IN CASE YOU MISSED IT: 5 key stories from September 24

Here are five Fastmarkets MB stories you might have missed on Tuesday September 24 that are worth another look.

The long-lasting downtrend in the international scrap market, which has pushed prices to three-year lows this month, has led to the point where steelmakers which use electric-arc furnaces (EAFs) have a significant advantage over those equipped with blast furnaces (BFs), which use iron ore as a feed.

The majority shareholder of aluminium producer UC Rusal has called on the London Metal Exchange to require aluminium producers using the exchange to reveal their carbon footprint, according to an executive at the Russian company.

Five private copper smelters in China have halted production because processing at market terms has become unfeasible due to a combination of weakening demand for end products, a tight copper concentrates market and the higher costs of complying with pollution standards.

Miners launch cheaper offer prices for manganese ore in response to declining demand from China.

Belgium-based battery-materials manufacturer Umicore has reached a multi-year supply agreement with South Korean battery maker LG Chem for nickel-cobalt-manganese (NCM) cathode materials, Umicore said on September 23.

What to read next
Fastmarkets has corrected the rationale for its MB-AL-0346 Aluminium P1020A premium, in-whs dup Rotterdam, $/tonne that was published incorrectly on Thursday January 29.
Fastmarkets has corrected the rationale for its MB-AL-0299 aluminium 6063 extrusion billet premium, ddp Spain that was published incorrectly on Friday January 23.
Learn about the recent trends in AI metals costs and their effect on lithium, copper and aluminium prices for energy storage.
Following a consultation period, which closed on January 14, Fastmarkets will increase the frequency of its MB-BX-0016 Bauxite, cif China, price assessment to a weekly basis, from a monthly basis. Fastmarkets will also extend the timing of the price to include cargoes for arrival within 90 days and move the publishing time to 7pm Shanghai time on Friday. […]
European aluminium scrap and secondary ingot prices are on the rise, driven by a significant shortage of scrap. Trade sources indicate that low generation has constrained domestic supply, and this is happening even before the expected EU scrap export restrictions in Spring 2026.
The capacity to smelt an additional volume of more than 800,000 tonnes per year of copper was advancing toward production readiness, Fastmarkets heard on Monday January 19.