查看更多>>摘要：Light bank and fund buying early in the session saw copper and aluminum build on gains made earlier but speculative selling at these higher numbers halted the advance, dealers said.Three-month copper broke through 1,620 dollars a metric ton resistance to 1,621 dollars/ton, while aluminium held above 1,350 dollars/ton to hit 1,359.50 dollars/ton before prices ran out of steam and drifted lower. Copper inventories continued to buck the trend and fell a further 3,275 tons to 958,075 tons as shipments to warehouses in China continued to pull stocks off warrant.
查看更多>>摘要：Standard Bank London Ltd. has revised down its projections for average cash prices of aluminium, zinc, lead and tin on the London Metal Exchange this year due to bearish fundamentals, the bank said in its May report. The 2002 LME aluminium cash price will average 1,400 dollars a metric ton this year, Standard Bank forecasts, down from the projected 1,425 dollars/ton in the April report. Last year, the contract price averaged 1,450 dollars/ton. "Despite the weak demand outlook, aluminium production is steadily rising. As such we could see further falls in the aluminium price in the short term," Standard Bank said.The bank projects an aluminium surplus of 350,000 tons this year, up from a surplus 310,000 tons last year. Higher output is expected to come from both the Western World and China. The Western World excludes China, Russia and the Commonwealth of Independent States. On the demand side, Standard Bank maintains its estimate for aluminium demand growth of 2.9 percent in the Western World this year against last year's contraction of 5 percent. The bank noted improved demand from South Korea, Taiwan and some industry sectors in the U.S., but said Japanese aluminium, demand remained in the doldrums in the first quarter. Japan is one of the world's major aluminium consumers.
查看更多>>摘要：Japanese aluminium consumers prefer to wait for the London Metal Exchange benchmark three-month aluminium contract to fall to 1,320 US dollars-1,325 US dollars a metric ton before buying aluminium in the physical market, Japanese traders said. "We don't think (the current LME three-month aluminium price) is the bottom level. Our customers now wait and see for a lower price," a Japanese trader said.Japan is one of the world's biggest aluminium consumers. Japanese consumers have slowed down in purchasing aluminium since last week on anticipation of further LME price falls, according to traders.
查看更多>>摘要：Japan's recovery in demand for primary aluminium caused primary aluminium stocks in the major Japanese port cities of Nagoya, Yokohama and Osaka to decline for a second consecutive month to 211,000 metric tons at the end of April, an official at Marubeni Corp said. "Warehouse companies told us the stocks are likely to decline even lower in May," the official said. At the end of March, the stocks stood at 233,200 tons, according to Marubeni data, down from 248,000 tons in February. Marubeni stock data are usually higher than official data compiled by the Japan Aluminium Association.
查看更多>>摘要：U.S. aluminium giant Alcoa Inc. said it has extended its joint venture with the Invest in Iceland Agency to explore the possibility of constructing a state-of-the-art aluminium smelter in eastern Iceland. In the project under review, Alcoa said it would own and operate a 320,000-metric-ton-per-year aluminium plant, which would receive power from at least a 500 Megawatt hydroelectric power station in eastern Iceland. The power station would be constructed and operated by Landsvirkjun, the national power company.
查看更多>>摘要：Aluminium Bahrain (Alba) has enlisted the help of U.S. producer Alcoa to consider the feasibility of boosting capacity at its aluminium smelter to one million tons per year by the end of the decade, sources close to the project said.A board meeting held last week approved the strategic alliance with Alcoa which would see the construction of a sixth potline at the smelter which is currently undergoing an expansion to 750,000 tons through a fifth potline due to be completed by 2005, sources added.
查看更多>>摘要：The Economics Times reported that the central government has imposed anti-dumping duty on several types of lead acid batteries imported from Singapore, Hong Kong and Taiwan into the country The duty will be the difference between the notified value and the landed value per kilogram of the battery of the specified type. The anti-dumping duty has been imposed with effect from May 22, 2002, and will be effective up to and including November 21, 2002, and will be payable in Indian currency. The types of batteries on which the duty has been imposed include industrial, automotive and motorcycle batteries. The notified values range from 2.0475 dollars per kg for maintenance-free automotive batteries to 3.7350 dollars per kg for motorcycle batteries. The actual landed cost being lower than these values, the difference would be payable as the anti-dumping duty.
查看更多>>摘要：Copper-zinc miner Compania Minera Antamina SA has become Peru's largest copper producer, new figures released from the Ministry of Mines and Energy show. In April Antamina produced 32,177 metric tons of copper, compared with the next largest producer, Southern Peru Copper Corp, (PCU) which turned out 26,120 tons.
查看更多>>摘要：Indonesia will impose a ban on tin ore exports from June 1, earlier than the government's previous plan date of June 15, a senior official at the Industry and Trade Ministry said. Director General of Industry and Trade Ministry, Sudar SA said the decision to expedite the ban was taken after meeting with local governments' of Bangka and Belitung, the main tin producing areas. Earlier Industry and Trade Minister Rini MS Soewandi said the government would impose the ban from June 15. Sudar SA said there is some pressure, such as from PT Tambang Timah's Labour Union who prefer that the ban be expedited.
查看更多>>摘要：A decision on whether or not to restart the Tara zinc mine in Ireland is to be announced by the end of May, a spokesman for its Finnish owner Outokumpu said. The company had previously targeted June as a reopening date. An improvement program aimed at securing the profitable operation and increased value of Tara was approved in March, with the decision to restart production subject to separate consideration. The pre-restart investments are estimated to total 15 to 20 million euros.
NSTL