Until now, aluminium has been hard to move, not hard to find. Global aluminium supply had remained technically intact, even as output was curtailed in parts of the Gulf, inventory buffers were drawn down or repositioned, and shipping through the Strait of Hormuz was severely disrupted.

Global aluminium producers face heightened uncertainty over power supplies, with oil and gas prices elevated by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, through which around 20% of global oil and liquefied natural gas (LNG) flows, sources told Fastmarkets.

Fastmarkets has suspended the monthly price assessment for CFR Jebel Ali, UAE, steel sections (light and medium), S235-SS400 amid the escalation of the conflict between the US, Israel and Iran and because relevant pricing data is not immediately available.

Fastmarkets is amending its pricing schedule for Egyptian steel semis and longs for the week of March 12-19 2026, owing to the holiday declared for Eid al-Fitr.

The aluminium market is being pulled in two directions by the Middle East conflict: upstream feedstocks sit in temporary buffer stocks, while delivering metal to consuming regions is becoming increasingly difficult.

The Mexican aluminium market might be strongly affected by the closure of the Strait of Hormuz, with supply constraints and consequently higher premiums, market participants told Fastmarkets on Tuesday March 10.

This consultation, which is open until April 8, 2026, seeks to ensure that our methodologies continue to reflect the physical market, in compliance with the International Organization of Securities Commissions (IOSCO) principles for Price Reporting Agencies (PRAs). This includes all elements of our pricing process, our price specifications and publication frequency. The price under review […]

Lundin Mining and BHP published a preliminary economic assessment on February 16 for their Vicuña joint venture, projecting average annual copper production of 395,000 tonnes over the first 25 years of operation as Argentina’s copper concentrate pipeline continues to build. PSJ Cobre Mendocino separately confirmed on February 14 that its feasibility study was under way.

Key takeaways: The indices for locally produced brown testliner and fluting showed minor drops in February. Fastmarkets calculated its monthly PIX Testliner GCC index at $462.20 per tonne on March 3, down by $0.18 per tonne (0.04%) from $462.38 on February 3. Fastmarkets calculated its PIX Fluting GCC index at $438.15 per tonne on March […]

Fastmarkets has suspended its pricing for Iran steel billet and slab exports following the escalation of the conflict between the US, Israel and Iran and because relevant, relative pricing data is not immediately available.