IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: 5 key stories from March 26

Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Tuesday March 26 that are worth another look.

The London Metal Exchange has announced a six-month suspension of listing fees for new cobalt brands on the exchange in a note to members on Tuesday March 26 amid emerging liquidity concerns from producers.

There are no concerns surrounding the availability of bauxite to meet ongoing aluminium supply chain growth, industry executives said at Fastmarkets’ 25th Bauxite & Alumina conference in Miami on March 26, noting that the key to ensuring access to it is improving community and government relationships. Additionally, new regulation to decommission upstream tailings dams in Brazil is necessary to ensure the safety of the community but should not reduce bauxite production, Milton Rego, deputy president of Brazilian Aluminium Association Abal, said at the same conference. 

MMG will declare force majeure on copper concentrate sales contracts from the Las Bambas mine in Peru, the mining company said on Tuesday in a notice to the Hong Kong Exchange. 

Most of Norsk Hydro’s operations are now running at normal capacity one week after the company was hit by a cyber attack, the Norwegian aluminium producer said on March 26.

Physical iron ore prices stayed rangebound for a second day on March 26, with market participants waiting on news of the full impact of Cyclone Veronica on Australian iron ore operations.

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Market reactions to the soon-to-be-implemented US copper tariff are driving short-term volatility and supply imbalances while fuelling long-term efforts to expand domestic production, recycling and infrastructure.
US export controls on recycled copper would have unintended consequences that could weaken the country’s domestic recycling and manufacturing ecosystems, the president of the Recycled Materials Association (ReMA) said.
The publication of Fastmarkets’ assessments for nickel 4x4 cathode, nickel briquette and nickel uncut cathode premiums in-whs Rotterdam was delayed on Tuesday July 16 because of a reporter error.
Fastmarkets has corrected its alumina index inferred prices, which were published incorrectly on Tuesday July 15.
The United States' copper recycling industry is ramping up pressure on policymakers to impose some form of export controls on high-purity copper scrap, arguing that current trade dynamics – particularly with China – are distorting prices, weakening domestic capacity and undermining national security goals.
Fastmarkets launched two new price assessments for Indonesia’s domestic trade in nickel ore on Tuesday July 15. The two price assessments are for domestic trades of Indonesian laterite ores with 1.6% and 1.2% nickel content. Indonesia now accounts for 60% of the global nickel supplies and while there is an official government reference price, known […]