Non-ferrous metals prices on LME show gains d-o-d except nickel

Prices of non-ferrous metals on the London Metal Exchange (LME) showed gains d-o-d except nickel. Three-month aluminium futures inched up by 2.4% to $2,201/t, nickel dipped 0.8% to $20,631/t, copper moved up slightly by 1.4% to $8,472/t, zinc prices gained 2.2% to $2,435/t and lead prices edged up by 0.9% to $2,182/t. Meanwhile, metal stocks in LME registered warehouses witnessed mixed trends.

COMEX market

Copper prices on the Commodity Exchange (COMEX) witnessed an increase of 1.3% to reach $8,448/t from $8,337/t in the last trading day.

India: Non-ferrous scrap markets

Aluminium

Despite positive futures, India's imported aluminium scrap market had mixed performance. Limited trading, minimal significant transactions, and European/UK sellers securing short-term bookings were noted. Middle East recyclers presented offers with $50-60/t price gap; US aluminium prices increased w-o-w.

The domestic aluminium scrap market in India has managed to maintain its stability as of 29 August, 2023. However, buyers are currently adopting a cautious approach, showing a preference for making modest purchases in smaller quantities.

Copper

Indian copper prices remained stable with buyers making small quantity purchases as the month comes to an end. However, caution prevails in the market as sellers are attempting to increase their offers.

Global updates

U.S. Q2 2023 GDP growth

In Q2 2023, U.S. real GDP rose by 2.1%, slightly surpassing the 2.0% growth in Q1. Consumer spending and business investment contributed to the growth, but exports declined, offset by decreased imports. Quarterly profits decreased 0.4% in Q2 following a 4.1% decline in Q1.

Japan's production and shipments dip

The production index of Japan declined by 2.0% from the prior month (103.6 in adjusted, 105.2 in original) and shipments fell by 2.1% (102.8 in adjusted, 104.4 in original). Contrarily, inventories rose by 0.9% (106.7 in adjusted, 107.5 in original), and the inventory ratio increased by 2.9% (108.4 in adjusted, 108.2 in original).

EU car market continues expansion

In July 2023, the EU car market grew by 15.2%, marking a year of continuous expansion. New car registrations hit 851,156 units amid post-pandemic recovery. Leading markets--France, Germany, Spain, and Italy--saw strong growth. January-July 2023 car registrations rose by 17.6%, yet remain 22% lower than 2019. Major markets exhibited double-digit gains, according to a recent Acea report.

Hydro advances carbon-neutral aluminum production

Hydro aims to cut 20,000 tonnes of CO2 annually by using biomethane in its Sunndal aluminium plant, a step towards carbon-neutral aluminium. Collaborating with Havila, Hydro plans to replace 70% of natural gas with biomethane, contributing to their emissions reduction goals.

Metallco boosts aluminum recycling with advanced sorting

Metallco Group upgraded Norwegian recycling with STEINERT's advanced sorting systems, boosting aluminum scrap purity to 99%. A forthcoming LIBS technology will further enhance alloy separation and purification capabilities.

Oil prices steady

Brent oil futures were down slightly by 0.07% to $85.80 per barrel. Crude oil WTI futures inched up by 0.06% to $81.66 per barrel.

Natural gas prices dip

Prices of natural gas were recorded at $2.792/MMBtu, down 0.14% at the time of publishing this insight.

Dollar index

The dollar index, which gauges the value of the greenback in a basket of six different currencies, hovered at 103.17, witnessing a slight rise by 0.01%.

The rupee was recorded at 82.64 against the dollar, depreciating marginally by 0.01% against the last closing.