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IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: 5 key stories from July 18

Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Thursday July 18 that are worth another look.

July 19, 2019
By Generic people page
Base metals Copper

Hong Kong Exchanges & Clearing will launch US dollar-denominated London Metal Mini Futures for six base metals starting Monday August 5, the exchange said recently.

Nickel’s three-month price on the London Metal Exchange continued its rally throughout afternoon trading on Thursday July 18, closing just below $15,000 per tonne amid a continued flurry of technical buying and a seven-year low in LME stocks.

Turkey’s Kar Madencilik has started producing primary pure magnesium metal (grade min 99.95%) at a smelter rented from Esan Eczacibasi, now called Kar Magnesium Smelter.

Aluminium producer Alcoa reported a net loss of $402 million in its 2019 second quarter results on July 17.

China’s 10 biggest copper smelters have set a treatment and refining charge purchase price floor of $55 per tonne/5.5 cents per lb for the third quarter of this year, sources close to the matter told Fastmarkets on Thursday.

What to read next
copper mine
Copper supply lags demand as permitting delays, lower grades, policy risks bite: FT Commodities Summit
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.
May 5, 2026
 · 
By Eva Qi
Hotter Commodities Junior Miners
Critical minerals boom boosts growth-stage juniors | Hotter Commodities
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.
April 30, 2026
 · 
By Andrea Hotter
Copper smelter close up
Kamoa-Kakula Q1 copper concentrate output falls 54% year on year, Ivanhoe weighs third-party purchases
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.
April 20, 2026
 · 
By Julienne Raboca
CESCO Week 2026
10 topics in focus at CESCO Week 2026 as sulfuric acid upends the copper market
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.
April 17, 2026
 · 
By Julienne Raboca
Fastmarkets proposes changes to Asia copper concentrates index weighting, seeks feedback on normalization of gold and silver
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 […]
April 8, 2026
 · 
By Fastmarkets pricing team
Steel
Aluminium’s challenge now beyond moving the metal | Hotter Commodities
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.
April 2, 2026
 · 
By Andrea Hotter