IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: 5 key stories from May 8

Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Wednesday May 8 that are worth another look.

Jiangxi Copper has become the first Chinese company to receive the green light to set up a large-scale copper scrap processing facility in Malaysia after China’s clamp down on copper scrap imports led to mass scrap diversion to Southeast Asia, two company officials directly involved in the matter told Fastmarkets.

Norsk Hydro will aim to create a more sustainable footprint through the life cycle of its low-carbon aluminium products and solutions, the company’s new president and chief executive officer, Hilde Merete Aasheim, said this week.

Major talking points among copper market participants attending the annual LME Asia Week in Hong Kong this week are whether Chinese copper demand for April and May is weaker compared with previous years and when high domestic copper stocks in China will decrease.

Copper output by Chilean state-owned producer Codelco recovered in March 2019 but remained depressed when compared with last year’s figures, national copper commission Cochilco said on Wednesday May 8.

While spent lead-acid battery and cable lead prices in the United States slipped amid a decline in London Metal Exchange prices and softening demand, market participants shared mixed outlooks, with some anticipating steadiness and others wary of further price declines.

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Read Fastmarkets' monthly base metals market for May 2025 focusing on raw materials including copper, nickel aluminium, lead, zinc and tin.