EUROPEAN MORNING BRIEF 08/02: SHFE base metals succumb to profit-taking; Chinese cobalt prices; govt body calls for restart of ABI smelter talks

Base metals traded on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were broadly lower during Asian morning trading on Thursday, with only aluminium in positive territory, after a jump in the dollar overnight and a bout of profit-taking sank prices.

The most-traded April copper contract on the SHFE dropped to 52,020 yuan ($8,300) per tonne as of 10.21 am Shanghai time, down by 870 yuan per tonne or 1.6% from the previous day’s close.

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Chinese cobalt metal prices softened over the past week due a slump in demand ahead of the Chinese New Year break (February 15-21).

The Quebec National Assembly in Canada has issued a motion calling for the resumption of negotiations between the Aluminerie de Bécancour Inc (ABI) smelter in Quebec and union workers with Syndicat des Métallos and the United Steelworkers union.

Non-ferrous scrap exports from the United States surged last year to the highest level since 2014, propelled largely by a surge in aluminum and copper scrap shipments to China.

Miners all too often lack a clear purpose and fail to approach investments with the appropriate due diligence, a method that drives shareholder returns lower, according to the chairman of Norilsk Nickel.

The heads of mining companies should not be complacent about higher prices and need to continue to run their operations as efficiently as possible, the chief executive officer of Konkola Copper Mines told Metal Bulletin. 

Brazil’s alumina export volumes inched up in January from a year earlier, with higher volumes to North America and Qatar offsetting the lack of shipments to South Africa and the United Arab Emirates.