Non-ferrous metals prices continue to decline

Non-ferrous metals prices on the London Metal Exchange (LME) witnessed a downward trend. The three-month futures contracts for aluminium declined by 1% to $2,205/t, followed by nickel decreasing by 1.5% to $20,732/t, copper dropping by 2.5% to $7,901/t, zinc declining by 2.5% to $2,313/t, and lead falling by 1.2% to $2,049/t.

Notably, copper prices dropped below the $8,000/t-mark for the first time since November last year.

US employment growth

According to the US Bureau of Labor Statistics, the employment rate witnessed a growth in 325 out of the 355 largest counties in the US from December 2021 to December 2022. The national employment figure reached 152.3 million in December 2022, reflecting a 2.6% increase over the year, as measured by the Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages programme. Midland, TX, experienced the highest growth in employment, with a significant increase of 7.9%.

India: Non-ferrous scrap market

The price of domestic aluminium alloy ingot ADC12 experienced a weekly decline of INR 3,000/t, reaching INR 196,000/t ex-works in Faridabad this week. The market saw a decline in transaction levels due to reduced demand, resulting in a downward trend in prices.

Aluminium scrap prices in India remained relatively stable. Tense prices were assessed at INR 163,000/t ($1,973/t), while utensil prices stood at INR 174,000/t ($2,106/t), both ex-yard in Delhi (excluding GST). Despite a reduction in P1020 prices by key industry players yesterday, trade volumes remained moderate.

Domestic copper armature scrap prices in Delhi fell by 1.2% to INR 666,000/t. Secondary and primary rod prices also declined by 1.4% (INR 704,000/t) and 1.1%, respectively. The constant decline in LME futures is impacting domestic prices, while suppliers showing reluctance to sell at lower prices resulting in reduced trade volumes.

Oil, natural gas prices drop

Brent oil futures decreased by 0.19% to $78.21 per barrel, while crude oil WTI futures fell by 0.36% to $74.08 per barrel.

Prices of natural gas were recorded at $2.39/MMBtu at the time of writing, down 0.33% as against the last closing.

Dollar index

The dollar index, which gauges the value of the greenback in a basket of six different currencies, hovered at 104.05. The index rose by 0.16% against the last session.

The rupee was recorded at 82.75 against the dollar, largely stable against the previous closing.