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Commodities News

Up-to-date news on raw materials


FT Mercati provides subscribers with a dedicated commodities news bulletin to stay up-to-date.
Here is a selection of the latest news:

1/20/2025

SPECTRO ALLOYS EXPANSION TO ADD 55,000 TONNES OF SECONDARY BILLET PRODUCTION CAPACITY BY 2026

Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA), the largest industrial company in the UAE outside of oil and gas and the world’s leading producer of premium aluminium, has announced the completion of civil works for the expansion project at its U.S. recycling subsidiary, Spectro Alloys.
Construction began in March 2024, culminating in a 90,000-square-foot addition. This new facility enables Spectro Alloys to broaden its product range by producing billet from post-consumer aluminium scrap.
The project’s first phase will add 55,000 tonnes of secondary billet production capacity, with initial hot metal production expected in the second half of 2025. Full production is anticipated by the first quarter of 2026, according to Spectro Alloys. The new facility is expected to create approximately 50 new jobs and increase Spectro’s recycling capacity by nearly 120 million pounds annually
In September 2024, Emirates Global Aluminium (EGA) acquired an 80 % stake in Spectro Alloys, advancing its global expansion into aluminium recycling and strengthening its presence in the United States, one of its largest international markets. Spectro Alloys, based in Rosemount, Minnesota, is a leading producer of secondary foundry alloys with a current annual production capacity of approximately 110,000 tonnes of aluminium ingots.
According to CRU, an independent business intelligence organisation, demand for recycled aluminium in the United States will reach approximately 7.6 million tonnes annually by 2033. Currently, the United States ranks as the world’s second-largest market for recycled aluminium.

1/20/2025

EU IMPOSES TARIFFS ON TINPLATE AND PVC

The European Commission this week announced provisional antidumping duties against Chinese tinplate producers and against imports of PVC—a key tin chemical application—from Egypt and the United States.
The Commission published preliminary results of its investigation into tinplate dumping in 2023 and 2024, so has imposed duties of 62.6% on Chinese companies and a lower rate for three individual companies.
European tinplate imports from China surged 73% in 2023 and increased again in 2024, approximately doubling the proportion of tinplate imports from China.
At the time, European tinplate producers expressed concern over the influx of Chinese tinplate, largely into Italy, although the effects of this have now mellowed and the industry is rebounding.
This decision from the EU to impose tariffs on tinplate follows similar decisions by Malaysia, Brazil, Indonesia, and the United States.
The European Commission also imposed tariffs on PVC ranging from 74.2% to 100.1% for imports from Egypt, and from 58% to 77% for imports from the United States. This follows an investigation that found imports from those countries between October 2022 and September 2023 were harming EU producers of PVC.
Tin is used in PVC stabilisers, representing the largest application for tin chemicals, which is the second largest tin use sector after solder.
One producer of PVC in Czechia, Spolana, announced in January it will cease production of a number of chemicals including PVC in 2025, citing macroeconomic pressures and high production costs in Europe reducing its competitiveness compared with the United States and Middle East.
These developments come as the latest wave of protectionist trade regulations amidst changing international trade dynamics. Weaker post-pandemic demand has put pressure on tin users, particularly in Europe, although the tide appears to be turning as the industry recovers from the demand trough.

1/20/2025

BASKET OPEC PRELIMINARY PRICE

OPECNA, the news agency of OPEC, announced the OPEC Basket preliminary price
17 january= $ 83.11 /b (down from previous daily value)
(The OPEC Reference Basket (ORB) introduced on 16 June 2005, is currently made up of the following: Algeria, Angola, Congo, Ecuador, Equatorial Guinea, Gabon, Iran, Iraq, Kuwait, Libya, Nigeria, Saudi Arabia , UAE and Venezuela.

1/20/2025

CHILE WILL RETAIN TOP SPOT IN COPPER OUTPUT AT LEAST UNTIL 2034

According to a study by copper commission Cochilco, Chile will increase its share of the global copper market to 27.3% in 2034 from the current 23.6%, with production of 5.54Mt, consolidating its leadership in the industry.
The agency’s copper output projection for 2034 represents growth of 5.6% compared with 2023, when production was 5.25Mt, indicates the forecasts for the period 2024-2034.
The positive outlook is a reflection of political and economic stability, as well as Chile’s geological advantages and infrastructure, "which generate confidence for investments," mining minister Aurora Williams said.
Cochilco currently has a portfolio of 51 projects in its database planned to be developed between 2024 and 2033 with investments of US$83.2bn.
Regarding the aspects of the national contingency that would facilitate the forecast increase in copper production, Williams responded to BNamericas that the possible approval of bills related to the modernization of the sectoral permit system and the reform of environmental general basis law to make project processing more fluid.
In addition, the minister highlighted the strengthening of Enami's work in favor of small-scale mining and the mining concession fee law that begins to be applied from January 1, 2025, which "will allow mining ownership to be energized, since by applying increasingly burdensome fees, there will be more commitment to developing projects and to explore more effectively."
Production of fine copper produced from concentrates is expected to reach a peak of 4.96Mt in 2027, of which 3.84Mt will be sold as copper concentrates and 1.12Mt as cathodes, said Cochilco´s senior mining analyst, Sergio Verdugo.
Overall copper production is also expected to peak in 2027 at 6.07Mt, the analyst added.
In the meantime, copper cathode production – without going through the flotation, smelting and refining process – is forecast to progressively decline due to the depletion of oxide resources and the lack of projects to extend the useful life of operations.
Output of copper in concentrates is expected to pick up due to the greater availability of sulfide minerals, the installed capacity of flotation plants and new projects.
So, by 2034 the production of copper in concentrates is forecast to reach 4.86Mt and that of cathodes 681,000t, according to Cochilco’s report.

1/20/2025

U.S. STEEL SHIPMENTS DIPPED IN NOVEMBER - AISI

According to the American Iron and Steel Institute (AISI) data, the steel mills shipped 6.702 million net tons in November 2024. This is a 6.6% drop from previous year's shipments of 7.175 million net tons in the same month. Shipments also slightly decreased throughout the month, falling 4.10% from the previous month. It should be noted that there were 6.987 million net tons of shipments in October of this year.
The United States' domestic steel mills shipped a total of 78.986 million net tons over the first eleven months of the year. This indicates a slight decline of 4.0% from the same time previous year. In 2023, these mills shipped 82.256 million net tons of steel between January and November.
The first eleven months of 2024's shipment quantities of various steel products are compared from year to year in this report. Exports of corrosion-resistant sheet remained stable throughout this period in comparison to the previous year.
Shipments of hot rolled sheets fell by 5%. On the other hand, cold rolled sheet shipments rose 4% year over year in comparison to the first eleven months of 2023, according to AISI.

1/20/2025

INDEXES 17 January

(Changes from the previous figure are indicated in brackets):
BALTIC DRY INDEX = 987 (declining)
Shipping and freight cost index. Despite its name, it collects data from the world's major routes, not just those in the Baltic Sea.

CRB COMMODITY INDEX = 374.82 (declining)
The Commodity Research Bureau has been published since 1958 and is an index on commodities

LME INDEX = 4078.20 (rising)
London Metal Exchange index of non-ferrous metals, world reference.