ASIAN MORNING BRIEF 31/05: LME base metals carry momentum; Comex copper dips in US; Peru’s Volcan suspends ops at Animón and Islay mines

The latest news and price moves to start the Asian day on Thursday May 31.

Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange rose further on Wednesday May 30, with nickel climbing 1.4% at the close and copper volumes trading at their highest level since April 19. Only aluminium bucked the trend with a slight decline. Read more in our live futures report.

Here are how prices looked at the close of trading:

Comex copper prices eased in morning trading in the United States, presenting a dip-buying opportunity for the market.

Peruvian zinc and lead miner Volcan has suspended mining at its Animón and Islay mines, part of its Chungar subsidiary, the company said in a release to the Peruvian stock exchange.

Zinc concentrate treatment charges (TCs) rose in May to their highest level this year, with smelters refraining from purchasing spot tonnages. The upward trend in lead concentrate TCs reversed after an import arbitrage opened up in China.

In the steel market, Egyptian Steel has started commercial production at its fourth steel plant in Al Ain Al Sokhna, the company said.

In raw materials, all pig iron production facilities in Brazil came to a halt this week due to a truck drivers’ strike over recent fuel price increases, Metal Bulletin was told.

China is likely to take an economic hit from its crackdown on scrap imports, prompting it to adopt a more pragmatic approach in the future, panelists of the Bureau of International Recycling’s International Trade Council said at the association’s conference in Barcelona, Spain.

What to read next
Copper demand in data centers is accelerating as artificial intelligence drives higher power needs, advanced cooling systems and greater infrastructure requirements. This trend highlights both the opportunities and challenges around sustainability, domestic production and global supply chains.
Fastmarkets proposes to clarify and amend some of the specifications for MB-ZN-0005 Zinc SHG min 99.995% ingot premium, ddp Midwest US, US cents/lb; MB-PB-0006 Lead 99.97% ingot premium, ddp Midwest US, US cents/lb; MB-SN-0011 Tin grade A min 99.85% ingot premium, ddp Midwest US, $/tonne; MB-NI-0240 Nickel 4x4 cathode premium, delivered Midwest US, US cents/lb; and the corresponding all-in prices for all of these including the quality, unit and location.
The publication of Fastmarkets’ MB-ALU-0002 Alumina index, fob Australia, $/tonne for Monday September 8 was delayed because of a reporter error. Fastmarkets’ pricing database has been updated.
Aurubis has secured long-term access to 75,000 tonnes per year of copper-gold concentrate from Troilus Gold's Quebec project starting as early as 2028, as the German smelter responds to what it describes as an "increasingly constrained" market for clean copper concentrate.
Tristan Pascall, chief executive officer of Vancouver-based First Quantum Minerals, gave an exclusive interview with Fastmarkets on Friday August 29, in which he explains why Africa is the best place to build large copper mines, and gave his opinion of the outlook for the nickel, gold and copper sectors.
Cost and availability concerns around copper have accelerated aluminium substitution in heating, ventilation, and air conditioning (HVAC) systems, with aluminium now used in an estimated 40% of global units, Lionel Chapis, Norsk Hydro’s senior vice president of Hydro Precision Tubing, told Fastmarkets in an exclusive interview on Tuesday August 26.