IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: 5 key stories from April 21

Here are five Fastmarkets stories you might have missed on Tuesday April 21 that are worth another look.

The lockdowns imposed due to the Covid-19 pandemic were offering automotive manufacturers a rare opportunity to take a step back and to re-evaluate their long-term strategies, the chief executive officer of Eurasian Resources Group has said.

Italian long steel producer Alfa Acciai Group has resumed production this week following a month of downtime, sources told Fastmarkets on April 17.

United States-based Ball Corp has announced that the Science-based Targets Initiative (SBTi) has approved the company’s targets for the reduction of absolute carbon emissions in its own operations by 55%, and within its value chain by 16%, by 2030 against a 2017 baseline.

Tantalum prices have found support due to tightness of supply and concerns about obtaining material during the continued lockdowns in central African countries imposed to control the spread of the Covid-19 pandemic.

A one-month construction suspension at Teck Resources’ Quebrada Blanca 2 copper mine in Chile is expected to cost the company at least $75 million, a figure set to rise if further delays are incurred.

What to read next
The Mexico Metals Outlook 2025 conference explored challenges and opportunities in the steel, aluminum and scrap markets, focusing on tariffs, nearshoring, capacity growth and global trends.
China has launched a coordinated crackdown on the illegal export of strategic minerals under export control, such as antimony, gallium, germanium, tungsten and rare earths, the country’s Ministry of Commerce announced on Friday May 9.
Fastmarkets proposes to amend the frequency of Taiwan base metals prices from biweekly to monthly, and the delivery timing for the tin 99.99% ingot premium from two weeks to four weeks.
The US-China trade truce announced on May 12 has brought cautious optimism to China’s non-ferrous metals markets, signaling a possible shift in global trade. Starting May 14, the removal of additional tariffs has impacted sectors like battery raw materials, minor metals and base metals such as zinc and nickel, with mixed reactions. While the improved sentiment has lifted futures prices and trade activity, the long-term effects remain unclear due to challenges like supply-demand pressures and export controls.
The publication of Fastmarkets’ assessments of Shanghai bonded aluminium, zinc and nickel stocks for April 30 were delayed because of a reporter error. Fastmarkets’ pricing database has been updated. The data effective for April 30 was published on May 7 as a result. The following assessments were affected:Shanghai aluminium bonded stocksShanghai zinc bonded stocksShanghai nickel […]
Global physical copper cathodes premiums were mixed in the week to Tuesday April 15, with US market moving down, Europe rising and Asia holding largely steady.