U.S. Gulf: Sources reported a quiet Gulf import market for the week, despite an uptick in industrial demand. Price ideas continued to be reported in the $35-$45/mt CFR range.
Cargoes bound for Brazil were expected to be valued at $35-$45/mt CFR, while sources put the Chilean market in a $45-$60/mt CFR range.
A June deadline to close Alcoa Inc.’s Intalco aluminum smelter near Ferndale, Wash., could be pushed back thanks to a $3 million earmark inserted into the final draft of the Washington state budget, local reports said. The updated budget is expected to be signed into law.
Newly bullish sentiment in the international aluminum market may have played a part in the increased state support, some speculated, thanks in part to aluminum prices recently posting a five-month high in China.
Alcoa officially closed its 269,000 mt/y Warrick County aluminum smelter at Evansville, Ind., on March 24, concluding a shutdown plan laid out in January.
Metals were softer on the London Metal Exchange last week. Aluminum, copper, lead, nickel, and zinc closed lower on March 30 compared with the week before.
Aluminum was $1,478.00/mt, down slightly from $1,480.00/mt a week earlier, and copper was worth $4,940.00/mt, lower than the prior week’s $5,060.50/mt.
Lead values shrank to $1,738.00/mt from $1,795.00/mt at last report, and nickel notched $8,425.00/mt versus $8,625.00/mt the week before. Zinc was lower as well, closing at $1,791.50/mt, down from the previous week’s $1,855.00/mt.