IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: 5 key stories from April 13

Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Monday April 13 that are worth another look.

Argentinian crude steel production fell by 26.7% year on year in March due to the closure of most plants during a mandatory quarantine enforced by the federal government to contain the spread of the Covid-19 virus, national steel chamber Acero Argentino said.

A total of 222,020 tonnes of copper scrap has been approved for import into China in a fifth round of metal scrap import quotas, according to an April 10 release from the China Solid Waste & Chemicals Management Bureau.

Operations at the Antamina zinc and copper mine in Peru have been suspended as part of its response to the Covid-19 pandemic, according to one of its joint venture partners, Teck Resources Ltd

Chinese minor metal, ore and alloy markets had mixed reactions to news of an extended South African lockdown.

China’s export price for grade-553 silicon fell to a five-and-a-half-month low on April 10 following the emergence of lower offers from traders amid persistently weak foreign demand.

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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 is extending the consultation period for the methodology of several of its black mass payables indicators and prices, and is also proposing changes to the names of CIF South Korea and EWX Europe black mass prices.
Rio Tinto Aluminium is expanding its footprint beyond its historic hydro-powered Canadian base, targeting Europe, Asia and Latin America as part of a deliberate diversification strategy, according to the unit’s chief executive officer.
Fastmarkets has corrected its copper concentrates treatment and refinement charge indices, which were published incorrectly on March 20 2026 due to a technical error.
Fastmarkets has corrected its copper concentrates treatment and refinement charge indices, which were published incorrectly on February 27 2026 due to a backend calculation error. Fastmarkets has also corrected the indices' rationale and all related inferred indices.