IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: 5 key stories from May 7

Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Tuesday May 7 that are worth another look.

The temporary truce on tariffs between China and the United States could be over, injecting a new round of uncertainty into the global financial markets and suspending hopes that a resolution to the countries’ trade impasse was likely. US President Donald Trump has threatened to raise the tariff on $200 billion-worth of Chinese imports to 25% from 10% by Friday May 10.

Gay Huey Evans will be the first female chairperson of the London Metal Exchange, replacing Brian Bender when he retires at end of the year, Fastmarkets understands.

Copper premiums in Shanghai have become less volatile due to there being less financing demand in the market after one of China’s largest copper importers, Tewoo Group, began experiencing liquidity troubles in late March. Tewoo was a hot topic of discussion among delegates attending LME Asia Week in Hong Kong this week.

Hernic Ferrochrome expects to scale down its smelting operations between June 1 and August 31, 2019, amid challenging market conditions, the company announced.

The second quarter has begun on a soft note in the US copper market, with market participants doubtful that premiums will see upward pressure over the summer. Fastmarkets AMM assessed the US copper cathode premium at 7-7.75 cents per lb delivered to the Midwest on Tuesday May 7.

What to read next
The Chilean government is pushing ahead with plans for a new copper smelter despite the global smelting crisis, Chile’s minister of mining, Aurora Williams told Fastmarkets, adding that the state will also play a key role in developing the country’s premium lithium assets
Just under two weeks ago, the chair of BHP made a phone call to his counterpart at mining peer Anglo American and set in motion a flurry of activity designed to create the largest copper producer in the world
Brazilian aluminium supply coming from Companhia Brasileira de Alumínio (CBA) is said to have tightened, helping to boost the P1020A ingot premium, market participants told Fastmarkets in the two weeks to Wednesday April 24
In anticipation of a tight market, copper concentrate traders have locked in 2025 volumes at notably low treatment charges, with deals being placed well below the long-term industry benchmarks
This move aligns with global demands for sustainability in the mining sector and sets Nexa on a path toward achieving net zero emissions by 2050
Fastmarkets has corrected the pricing rationale for MB-AL-0302 aluminium 6063 extrusion billet premium, ddp North Germany (Ruhr region), $/tonne, which was published incorrectly on Friday April 19. No prices were corrected.