Non-ferrous metals prices on LME witness downward trend

Prices of non-ferrous metals on the London Metal Exchange (LME) witnessed downward trend. Three-month aluminium futures were firm at $2,193/t, nickel prices down 2.2% to $20,593/t, copper moved down slightly by 1.39% to $8,371/t, zinc prices edged down by 0.4% to $2,463/t, and lead prices fell 0.36% at $2,225/t. Meanwhile, metal stocks in LME-registered warehouses witnessed mixed trend.

India: Non-ferrous scrap markets

Aluminium

The domestic aluminium alloy ingot market saw prices decreasing despite firm raw material prices, especially tense scrap, along with firm futures contracts and nominal change in import scrap prices w-o-w. Prices of ADC12 aluminium alloy ingots fell by INR 2,000/t to INR 190,000-191,000/t exw-Faridabad (excluding GST), according to SteelMint data. In September, Maruti (MSIL) experienced a slight price adjustment of INR 750/t, bringing the price to INR 202,250/t.

Copper
India's copper market witnessed price stability with buyers adopting a cautious approach in anticipation of potential price hikes, according to trade sources. Secondary rod prices stand at INR 717,000/t, while copper armature is at INR 676,000/t, both quoted ex-Delhi. In the imported segment, US-origin copper motor scrap offers range between $1,190 and $1,200/t CIF Mundra, an increase of $40-50/t w-o-w.

Global updates

In August, the Halifax House Price Index reported the most significant monthly decrease in UK house prices since November of last year. According to Halifax, average house prices in the UK dropped 1.9% from July, following a revised 0.4% decline from June to July. The August decline was more substantial than anticipated, as the market consensus cited by FXStreet had predicted a 0.3% decrease.

Indonesia's reserve assets remained substantial at the end of August, totalling $137.1 billion, though slightly down from $137.7 billion in July. The decrease was due to factors like external debt payments and the need to stabilise the Rupiah amid global financial market uncertainty. These reserves cover 6.2 months of imports or 6 months of imports and servicing external debt, well above the international standard of three months.

Oil prices inch down

Brent oil futures were down slightly by 0.41% to $90.23 per barrel. Crude oil WTI futures inched down by 0.41% to $87.16 per barrel at the time of reporting.

Natural gas prices dip

Prices of natural gas were recorded at $2.506/MMBtu, down 0.57% at the time of publishing this report.

Dollar index

The dollar index, which gauges the value of the greenback in a basket of six different currencies, hovered at 104.85, witnessing a slight dip of 0.02%.

The rupee was recorded at 83.15 against the dollar, depreciating marginally by 0.34% against the last closing.