The Spanish steel industry has demanded clarification from the government following a March 29 decree to shut down all non-essential production as part of the battle to contain the Covid-19 pandemic, Fastmarkets heard on Tuesday March 31.

Xin Guobin, Deputy Minister of Industry and Information Technology (MIIT), has urged regional officials to speed up the introduction of policies to boost automobile consumption.

The three-month zinc price on the London Metal Exchange was higher during morning trading on Tuesday March 31, with upward price action supported by an 8,825-tonne fresh cancelation, while strong Chinese purchasing managers’ index (PMI) data bolstered the base metals complex.

China’s official manufacturing purchasing managers’ index (PMI) rebounded to 52 in March, after 35.7 in February, which means 52% of purchasing managers reported conditions were “better” in March than they were a month earlier.

With the exception of that for nickel, base metals prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were up at the close of the morning trading session on Tuesday March 31.

Domestic prices for hot-rolled coil in Northern Europe were fairly stable last week due to falls in demand and production cuts caused by the Covid-19 pandemic.

The lockdown in India has caused a variety of logistical issues resulting in imported scrap material becoming stranded at ports and leading to potentially large charges at a time when trading has come to a sudden halt, market sources have told Fastmarkets.

The three-month aluminium price on the London Metal Exchange was lower during morning trading on Monday March 30, with price action falling by around 1.6% after more than 24,000 tonnes of metal was delivered back to LME-registered warehouses across Asia.

Markets were looking quite mixed this morning, Monday March 30, with most Asian-Pacific equity indices down, the pre-market Dow Jones Industrial Average up by 0.2%, oil prices down by around 5% and the base metals prices mixed.

Base metals prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were down across the board at the close of morning trading on Monday March 30, with aluminium leading the complex lower with a fall of 2.1%.