IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: 5 key stories from August 9

Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Friday August 9 that are worth another look.

China launched a consultation paper on Friday August 9 to implement a stricter arsenic threshold on copper concentrates imports, a move that could lead to drastic changes in global trade flow of high-impurity concentrates and a further premium on treatment charges of clean concentrates.

Weak demand and bearish macroeconomic factors continued to pressure primary aluminium foundry alloy premiums lower in Europe and the United States on Friday August 9.

Treatment and refining charges for spot copper concentrates trended lower still early in August, with traders placing sharp bids on tendered cargoes and smelters amid continued port disruptions in Peru.

The Chinese domestic alumina price hit a fresh low on Thursday August 8 after falling for 13 consecutive weeks as a result of weaker domestic demand and an oversupplied market.

After more than a year of facing tariffs on steel imports under Section 232, downstream manufacturers in the United States have begun idling capacity and laying off workers while they tackle higher production costs and reduced market share.

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Own-sourced copper output from Glencore’s African copper assets — KCC and Mutanda in the Democratic Republic of Congo — surged by 68% year on year to 67,900 tonnes over the same period, while Glencore’s cobalt production fell by 39% year on year amid the DRC’s export quota system.
Copper’s long-term outlook is constrained by the industry’s limited ability to bring new supply online fast enough to meet rising demand, with permitting delays, higher capital costs and policy risks slowing project development, industry executives said at the FT Commodities Global Summit on Wednesday April 22.
Capital is flowing back into junior mining, but selectively. Investment is increasingly favouring development‑stage assets with clearer paths to production, supported by government funding and strategic partnerships. While demand for critical minerals underpins the cycle, early‑stage explorers continue to struggle for capital as investors prioritise discipline, ESG alignment and near‑term cash flow.
Copper in concentrate production from Ivanhoe Mines' Kamoa-Kakula complex in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC) fell to 61,906 tonnes in the first quarter, down by 54% from 133,120 tonnes a year earlier, with the company now evaluating local third-party concentrate purchases to advance the ramp-up of its on-site smelter, according to an April 13 production release as the market focused its attention on the impact of global sulfuric acid shortages during CESCO Week in Chile from April 13-17.
China's planned sulfuric acid export ban from May 1, historic lows for copper concentrates treatment and refining charges (TC/RCs) and a fragmenting 2026 benchmark system dominated CESCO Week 2026 in Santiago from April 13-17.
The proposal would align the index more closely with physically traded volumes in the region, and enable it to adjust to evolving market conditions. This proposal follows an observed widening of the spread between trader and smelter purchase components of the index and is aligned with a majority of market feedback. Additionally, Fastmarkets seeks feedback […]