查看更多>>摘要：The base metals ended the week generally weaker with zinc in particular dropping through 800 dollars a metric ton support on the back of stop loss selling.With fresh fund selling following, three-month zinc touched a low bid of 789 dollars/ton, marking a 10-week low and disappointing players who had hoped the market could break through 820 dollars/ton in the afternoon session.Zinc had touched 807.50 dollars/ton but this was a far cry from last week, when the market approached 850 dollars/ton and had looked set to make strong gains above this number. Three-month metal ended the kerb session at 792 dollars/ton (bid). Support is now seen down to 780 dollars/ton and below this at 750 dollars/ton below this.
查看更多>>摘要：Readers of this report will appreciate that we had suggested a possible modest rally in copper and warned about a possible slip in aluminium prices. Having said that we also concede that our cautious optimism is likely to be tested in the next few weeks, as key base metals are likely to weather volatile currency and equity markets along with probable stock increases. However, I am not writing off the base metals yet, even if we undergo yet another bout of seemingly endless consolidation in next few weeks. I expect the market to remain subdued this week, with the exception of copper that may attempt 1620 dollars resistance, a break of which may prompt firmness across the board.
查看更多>>摘要：Alumina market is showing signs of upward swing. The recent tenders of Nalco have shown rising prices and the price now has risen to 158.35 dollars per ton. The previous 2 tenders fetched around 156 dollars and 157 dollars per ton on FOB basis. Much of the material is said to be destined to China. However, the latest tender for alumina has reportedly gone at around 155 dollars per ton FOB, which shows a slight fall in price. Nalco is likely to sell over one million tons of alumina in the world market in 2002-03. It is now holding one auction every 15 days and sells around 25,000 tons during each auction. For long-term contracts it has already chosen it's parties and these are likely to finalized some time later. Nalco is one of the lowest cost producers of alumina in the world. To Nalco's 1 mt alumina one has to add another 250,000 to 300,000 tons of Indal and India is a considerably a large exporter of alumina in the world.
查看更多>>摘要：Exports, volume growth and cost reduction measures have helped Indo Gulf Corporation Ltd to end 2001-2002 with a 16 per cent increase in net profit at Rs 2.96 billion (Rs 2.51 billion).Net sales for the year rose by 23 per cent to Rs 27.06 billion from Rs 21 billion, a significant portion coming from copper exports. The board has recommended a dividend of Rs 2.60 per share aggregating Rs 58.55 crore. The copper division recorded sales of Rs 22.38 billion, an increase of 32.4 per cent over the previous Rs 16.90 billion. Expansion of its copper smelter and exports helped improve sales despite a fall in LME prices and fall in customs duty by 3.5 per cent. The smelter's capacity has been raised to 1,50,000 tonnes from 1,00,000 tons.
查看更多>>摘要：Domestic production for copper in the fiscal year ending March 2002 stood at 305,519 tons. An increase of 31 percent over the 232,900 tons produced in the previous. The production is actually 2.1 percent below the government's target of 312,158 tons, according to official estimates. In March 2002, copper production hit a record 33,027 tons, which would take the production on annual basis to near 400,000 tones for the year. The production in March was 8.3 percent higher than targeted output of 30,494 tons.
查看更多>>摘要：Exide Industries Ltd is looking abroad for technological and production tie-ups. T V Ramanathan, managing director and chief operating officer (COO) said that the company's officials have already visited Canada and the United States. Exide may also set up a special purpose vehicle (SPV) for the purpose and "the company was offering to take up manufacture in India of batteries currently begin shipped from North America to Asian markets, he added.Once the relationship matures, the company would explore the possibility of equity sharing with the proposed partner. Exide is also open to locating the plant outside the Indian shores. "It could be in a place where lead is available locally," said Ramanathan. Addressing a press conference, S B Ganguly, chairman of Exide, said the company was looking at the replacement market in the commercial vehicle and tractor segments, which represented 75 per cent of national sales, as the driver for growth in the coming years. It has devised a two-pronged strategy targeted towards the marketing and financial sides of the company.
查看更多>>摘要：Kazakhstan's largest non-ferrous metals maker Kazakhmys Corp. plans to produce about 420,000 tons of refined copper in 2002, up slightly from 418,400 tons produced last year, when a 6 percent annual increase was registered, the company said. The company produced 144,700 metric tons of refined copper in January-April, up 7.3 percent on the year, the company said. The company exports 99 percent of its copper output, mainly to Germany, Italy, Saudi Arabia, China and South Korea. In January-April, Kazakhmys shipped 20,800 tons of copper wire to China, which was the entire amount of this product manufactured by the company during the period.
查看更多>>摘要：Canadian miner Noranda Inc. announced that it plans to idle production at its Bell Allard underground zinc mine in Quebec for a one-month period beginning June 29. The temporary closure is in response to a prolonged period of low prices and high metal inventories on the world markets, Noranda said in a press release. "Market conditions for zinc have not improved as quickly as we had expected therefore we needed to take action toward reducing our overall output and to realize as much potential from the remaining ore reserves," said George Jones, Noranda senor vice president, zinc.
查看更多>>摘要：Low zinc prices and concentrate shortage will see China's refined zinc output decline for the first time in 20 years this year, by 100,000 metric tons from last year to 1.98 million tons, state-owned Antaike Information Development Co. analyst Feng Juncong said.Speaking at the second China Nonferrous Metals Industry Investment and Trade Forum, Fend sand China's 2002 zinc exports are likely to shrink by 80,000 tons from last year to around 460,000 tons. But China's reduction of exports and output isn't large enough to boost world zinc prices, though it is the world's largest producer country. On the contrary, Chinese zinc producers' plans to resume full operations and exports when zinc prices recover will limit prices' rise, according to the analyst. Chinese zinc producers started reducing output from July 2001 after London Metal Exchange three-month zinc drifted below 1,000 dollars/ton in the second quarter.
查看更多>>摘要：Plans by Indonesia's provincial governments to set up small-scale tin smelters could result in overproduction, offsetting any possible boon from the central government's plan to ban tin ore exports, analysts and market participants said.Exports of illegally produced tin ore from Indonesia, partly contributed to the weak global tin prices currently, traders said. Analysts are in favour of the planned ban on tin ore exports, saying that it will cut oversupplies of tin in the world market and boost prices. "Currently tin production capacity is already enough to fulfill demand. The (local government's) plan will result in overproduction," said analyst Norico Gaman of BNI Securities in Jakarta.
NSTL