U.S. Gulf: No new business was reported on the Gulf import market. Price ideas held steady in the $35-$45/mt CFR range, and sources said the market was currently experiencing little demand.
Cargoes to Brazil were expected to command $35-$45/mt CFR, and the Chilean market was called $45-$60/mt CFR. Northwest European smelter pricing was described in the (-)$5-$5/mt FOB range.
Alcoa Inc. confirmed it will permanently close its 269,000 mt/y Warrick Operations aluminum smelter by the end of March, the company said in a press release. Alcoa had previously stated it would curtail the Evansville, Ind., facility’s remaining production by the end of the first quarter.
Including the upcoming Warrick smelter closure, Alcoa has curtailed or permanently shut down 812,000 mt of smelting capacity since March 2015, citing an approximate 30 percent drop in the Midwest transaction aluminum price and a roughly 40 percent decline in the Alumina Price Index.
London Metal Exchange prices were mixed in March 23 trading. Copper, lead, nickel, and zinc were higher for the week, but aluminum was down.
Aluminum fell to $1,480.00/mt from $1,495.00/mt a week earlier, and copper was logged at $5,060.50/mt, an increase from $4,945.00/mt at last report. Lead firmed to $1,795.00/mt from the prior week’s $1,768.00/mt, and nickel closed at $8,625.00/mt, up from $8,460.00/mt the week before. Zinc was up as well at $1,855.00/mt, compared with $1,738.50/mt a week earlier.