As Alcoa looks ahead to 2025, the company is keeping a close watch on trade policies while focusing on growing its value-added aluminum products and securing its supply chain, despite global challenges. In the fourth quarter, aluminum production at the Alumar smelter in Brazil increased by 2%, reaching 571,000 metric tons as the facility continues […]
Trump wants to 25% import tariffs for Canada and Mexico. And to do it as soon as Feb 1.
The focus was on energy dominance, trade policy and deregulation which could provide opportunities for domestic growth, but they also raise questions about supply chains, global markets and long-term planning.
Market Movement: Stocks are mixed this week bond yields are up after a strong jobs report on Friday.Job Numbers: Non-farm payrolls added 256k jobs, unemployment’s down to 4.1%, but inflation’s still stubborn—Fed might hold off on rate cuts.Upcoming Data: PPI and CPI reports drop this week—watch for inflation updates.Port Strike Avoided: Strike was called off […]
On January 10th, a newly formed Canada-U.S. Trade Council was formed. It is meant to smooth over growing trade tensions, inspired by the tariff threat, but skepticism is already running high. A service center I spoke with dismissed the council outright, saying, “The bios are heavy on politicians, which means little will be accomplished.” It’s […]
Some of you might be scratching your heads, wondering why you should even care about future’s spreads when you’re doing deals back-to-back. Well, hang tight, and I’ll break it down for you in plain terms. What happened to the Mar-April aluminum spread on the LME? The spread between March and April went into a backwardation, […]
This week showed just how important aluminum is to the U.S. and global economy. Talks about new Trump tariffs are focusing on protecting American manufacturers from unfair competition, especially from China, while building stronger partnerships with allies like Canada. The goal is to ramp up domestic production and recycling, invest in infrastructure, and secure affordable […]
The aluminum industry faces persistent power blues amid rising energy prices.
The aluminum and scrap markets are currently facing a mix of challenges and cautious optimism as industry players navigate fluctuating supply and demand conditions. Scrap market dynamics Manufacturers and mills are reporting an unbalanced scrap market. Some mills believe that the supply of mid to high-value scrap has been mostly reprocessed, but there is an […]