EUROPEAN MORNING BRIEF 05/04: Base metals prices higher on possible US-China trade talks; Shanghai copper premium hits 17-month high; PPS floats copper tender

Good morning from Metal Bulletin’s office in Singapore as we bring you the latest news and pricing stories on Thursday April 5.

Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were all higher during Asian morning trading on Thursday amid hopes that talks between the United States and China could avert a global trade war.

The LME three-month copper price was at $6,747 per tonne as of 03.29am London time, up by $23 per tonne from Wednesday’s closing price.

The Shanghai Futures Exchange is closed on Thursday and Friday to mark the Qing Ming Festival, or tomb-sweeping day.

Check Metal Bulletin’s live futures report here.

LME snapshot at 03.29am London time
Latest three-month LME Prices
  Price ($ per tonne) Change since previous session’s close ($)
Copper 6,747 23
Aluminium 1,997 6
Lead 2,376.50 4.5
Zinc 3,262.50 4.5
Tin 20,940 40
Nickel 13,280 130

Copper premiums in Shanghai rose to a 17-month high with market participants hoping for declining import costs following a cut in value-added tax (VAT).

South Korea’s Public Procurement Service (PPS) has floated a tender to procure 500 tonnes of grade A copper cathode, according to a notice from the state agency published late on Wednesday.

Teck Resources Ltd has increased its stake in Compañía Minera Teck Quebrada Blanca SA through the purchase of private Chilean firm Inversiones Mineras SA, the Canada-headquartered company said.

Zorba prices are beginning to fall in the US, with fears of mounting supplies rippling through the market due to China’s 25% tariff on US aluminium scrap imports.

Despite this week’s statement from the US Environmental Protection Agency announcing plans to revise greenhouse gas and corporate average fuel economy standards, experts who spoke to American Metal Market expect automotive lightweighting to continue.

Metal Bulletin is hosting a free web seminar at 9am London time today to discuss the key drivers of the battery raw materials markets, including substitution risk, electric vehicle policy, and supply of lithium, nickel and cobalt. Click here to register.

What to read next
Asian spot copper premiums rose in the week ended Tuesday July 23, with premiums imported into China increasing on improved arbitrage terms. In the US market, supply failed to keep up with strong demand while in Europe participants were mostly off for the summer holidays
In the fourth episode of Fastmarkets critical minerals podcast Fast Forward, Freeport-McMoRan CEO and president Kathleen Quirk tells host Andrea Hotter why there's a preference to build and not build new supplies of copper right now
Demand for primary aluminium from the green transition remains a “brighter spot” for consumption amid an otherwise challenging downstream demand outlook, Eivind Kallevik, Norsk Hydro’s chief executive officer and president, told Fastmarkets in an exclusive interview on Tuesday July 23
Acquisition Company Limited (ACG) has agreed to buy the Gediktepe mine in Turkey — the company’s first deal as it works to build a sizeable mid-tier copper producer, its chairman and chief executive officer told Fastmarkets.
Copper market price speculation is driving the base metals narrative, head of research at UK-based services provider Sucden Financial Daria Efanova said during the company’s third-quarter metals webinar on Wednesday July 17.
Chinese mining giant CMOC reported a 178% year-on-year increase in cobalt metal production for the first six months of 2024, according to an announcement by the company on Friday July 12