1. LME price extends gains but remains near HARBOR’s identified “value” zone of $2,300s per mton.
LME Cash aluminum prices closed at a one-week high of $… per mton, up 1.2% or $… per mton from yesterday. Meanwhile, LME 3M aluminum prices increased by 1.4% to $… per mton, rising in weekly terms by…
2. ALERT! – US BILLET. TARIFF INDUCED DEMAND BOOST: US billet demand boosted by Tariffs, more upside ahead.
US billet demand keeps improving in the back of Tariffs. In this context, we see US extruders’ lead times have improved to 3-6 weeks as of today. Meanwhile, Harbor’s US spot billet upcharge remains unchanged between… c/lb.
3. ALERT! – EUROPEAN BILLET. UNCHANGED: EU billet premiums unchanged for second week in a row.
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4. ALERT! – EUROPE D226 & SECONDARY SCRAP. DOWNWARD PRESSURE: US automotive tariff paralyzes the EU automotive market.
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5. LME Cash-3M narrows marginally but remains supportive of inventory financing deals.
The Cash-3M contango closed the week narrowing to $… per mton from $… per mton previously. The April–May contango tightened to $… per mton, while May-June contango widened to…
6. China’s aluminum prices underperform and continue to test technical support.
SHFE front-month aluminum prices closed today’s session down 0.5% at… yuan per mton. In weekly terms, SHFE front-month aluminum prices declined by…