May 7, 2024

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• LME Aluminum 3M Select is up $9/mt, trending sideways.
  • Last trade was $2,560/mt (6:45 AM CST)
  • The US might put a 43.5% import tariff on certain South Korean aluminum extrusion products and companies, according to South Korean sources. The tariffs will range from 0% to 43.5%, depending on the company, the sources stated. It is currently unclear how this might impact aluminum imports from South Korea. Last year, the US imported a total of 115,000 mt of aluminum products from South Korea (including extruded products). This represented about 2% of the US’s total aluminum imports (across all products). (Sources: US Census Bureau, MT Newswires (via Bloomberg))
• LME Copper 3M Select is up $60/mt, bouncing after last week’s losses.
  • Last trade was $9,974/mt (6:45 AM CST)
  • Glencore is now eyeing copper miner Anglo American for a potential buyout, according to Reuters and Bloomberg reports. Based on comments from Glencore, the discussions are preliminary and internal, and might not result in an offer. Anglo American has been struggling in recent years, and became a takeover target for some of the world’s copper miners and trading houses. Last late month, BHP made a $38.9 billion offer for Anglo American, which Anglo quickly rejected. (Source: Bloomberg)
• Prompt month CME HRC Steel last settled at $779/st (6:45 AM CST).
• Nyrstar will reopen its Budel zinc smelter later this month after a four-month hiatus for maintenance. Trafigura, the parent company of Nyrstar, cited improved market conditions for the reopening. Even though LME zinc prices are up about 9.8% on the year, adding more supply to the market could potentially be bearish. If you have exposure to the zinc market, please contact AEGIS for strategies. (Source: Reuters)

Price Indications

Today's Charts

AEGIS Insights

5/1/2024: AEGIS Factor Matrices: Most important variables affecting metals prices

4/25/2024: Mexico's New Tariffs on Steel and Aluminum Imports Create Uncertainty in US Markets

4/3/2024: Important US Economic Data (AEGIS Reference)

3/20/2024: Midwest Premium Buyers Should Hedge While Prices Hover at 3-Year Lows, and Demand Appears To Be Stabilizing

2/27/2024: Aluminum Consumers Should Still Implement Hedges, Even Though Russia Sanctions Mean Little

2/2/2024: China's Real Estate Woes Provide Opportunity for Copper Consumers

1/25/2024: Aluminum Starts 2024 On a Down Note, But Potential Supply Shocks Give Consumers a Reason to Hedge

5/6/2024: First Quantum hopes new Panamanian leader brings fresh look to disputed copper mine

5/6/2024: EU clears $14.9 bln purchase of U.S. Steel by Japan's Nippon

Important Disclosure: Indicative prices are provided for information purposes only, and do not represent a commitment from AEGIS Hedging Solutions LLC ("Aegis") to assist any client to transact at those prices, or at any price, in the future. Aegis makes no guarantee to the accuracy or completeness of such information. Aegis and/or its trading principals do not offer a trading program to clients, nor do they propose guiding or directing a commodity interest account for any client based on any such trading program. Certain information in this presentation may constitute forward-looking statements, which can be identified by the use of forward-looking terminology such as “edge,” “advantage,” “opportunity,” “believe” or other variations thereon or comparable terminology. Such statements are not guarantees of future performance or activities.