WEEK-IN-BRIEF: Sanctions move closer to metal companies; Michelmore interview; UK zinc premiums; Li video; costly spat

What happened in and around metal markets over the past week? Review of the latest news and market moves from Metal Bulletin editor Alex Harrison

What happened in and around metal markets over the past week? Review of the latest news and market moves from Metal Bulletin editor Alex Harrison

Sanctions on Russia moved somewhat closer to metal companies, with the designation of Norilsk non-executive — and titanium producer VSMPO-Avisma chairman — Sergey Chemezov.

USA-based titanium consumer Boeing said it was reviewing the sanctions.

Fears about possible constraints on trade with Ukraine meanwhile drove increased Russian steel mill interest in alloys from producers outside Ukraine, as Metal Bulletin senior correspondent Janie Davies reported.

Elsewhere in alloys, exports of manganese ore from Saldanha port in South Africa hit prices last month.

Were you on the right side of the nickel trade? Interest in the alloying metal continues to grow. Metal Bulletin assesses prices for both nickel ore imports into China and nickel pig iron in the country: both sets of prices once again made robust gains.

Andrew Michelmore is the ceo of MMG and “goes where the resources are”. He recently led a consortium to buy the Las Bambas copper project from Glencore. He talked to Metal Bulletin’s Shivani Singh shortly before the deal went through.

We launched an index for copper concentrates TC/RCs recently. Find out here about the latest moves in the copper concentrates market.

And a throwback here to copper correspondent Mark Burton’s video, explaining why we started the index, and how it works.

The copper market has been driven by its use as a tool for financing in recent years. There are reports that China’s banking regulator may soon lift the minimum deposit and take other steps to rein in this resilient business.

Aluminium premiums in Brazil’s domestic market assessed by Metal Bulletin have fallen.

But zinc premiums in the UK have risen: material is in strong hands!

The LME is looking at launching regional premium contracts for aluminium.

Will they work, Metal Bulletin columnist Lord Copper asks.

HKEx ceo Charles Li’s plans for closer ties with China appear to have political momentum, and a good deal of planning, behind them.

Trading company Gunvor is hiring in Shanghai’s free-trade zone.

How much did a spat between the managements of two companies wipe off their combined values in April?

Alex Harrison
aharrison@metalbulletin.com
Twitter: @alexharrison_mb

What to read next
The global copper market has finally received the widely anticipated news that imports to the US will be tariffed from August 1. The finer details of the tariffs, including their scope, and whether key copper-exporting nations like Chile, Canada and Peru will be exempt, remain unclear.
LME copper prices took a significant hit following US President Donald Trump's announcement of a potential 50% tariff on copper imports. The uncertainty surrounding the timeline and implementation of the tariff has left market participants hesitant, with analysts noting its immediate impact on price momentum and trading activity.
Fastmarkets has launched MB-AL-0424 Aluminium P1020A premium, fob Indonesia, $/tonne on July 9 due to an expected increase in Indonesia-origin aluminium exports. MB-AL-0424 Aluminium P1020A premium, fob Indonesia, $/tonneQuality: P1020A or 99.7 % Minimum Al purity (Si 0.10% max, Fe 0.20% max) in line with LME specifications. Ingot, T-bar, sowQuantity: Min 500 tonnesLocation: FOB IndonesiaTiming: […]
To increase the transparency of our methodology, Fastmarkets clarifies that the quotation period of the MHP nickel payable indicator is the month of delivery, or the month M. Any data points Fastmarkets received otherwise will be normalized to the M month based on the monthly spreads of the prevailing exchange-traded Class-1 nickel reference price, or […]
'Probably miscalculated’ assumptions at Kakula mine force Ivanhoe to overhaul entire Kamoa-Kakula complex, explains CEO Marna Cloete.
Following an initial consultation with the market, Fastmarkets is proposing to:  The new specifications would be as follows, with amendments in italics: MB-CU-0002 Copper grade 1 cathode premium, ddp Midwest US, US cents/lb Quality: Grade A 99.9935% min copper cathode conforming to LME specifications BS EN 1978:2022 – Cu-CATH-1 or Grade 1 Electrolytic Copper Cathode ATSM B1115-10 Quantity: Min […]