Base metals

An ongoing disruption to trade via the Red Sea and recent strength in some Asian markets are providing support to aluminium premiums across Europe, despite a continued period of low regional demand, participants have told Fastmarkets

Aluminium and nickel appear to have once again escaped inclusion in the latest list of sanctions imposed by western governments on Russia, ending days of speculation that increased both the prices and the traded volumes of the metals.

Fastmarkets’ 2024 outlook for key raw materials and ingredients used in the production and distribution of fast-moving consumer goods

Weak demand continues to stem profitability and prevent capacity return in the European aluminium market, Norsk Hydro’s chief executives told Fastmarkets in an exclusive interview on Wednesday February 14.

The copper concentrate market was already tight, but the addition of major new smelting capacity this year – starting with the expansion of Freeport’s Gresik smelter in Indonesia — will likely mean maintenance breaks, capacity curtailments and potentially even closures while operating costs start to become untenable, Fastmarkets understands.

Major aluminium producers Alcoa, Rio Tinto and Century Aluminum have been accused of pocketing vast sums of money from the sale of aluminium products to the beverage industry in the US at inflated prices – and of potentially colluding to do so