There was a lot going on this past week on both the geopolitical and economic fronts. Investors were fixated on the two-day visit to China by President Trump. He arrived in Beijing last Wednesday night, with a massive corporate delegation in tow. Expectations were high that some progress would be made on a host of thorny issues. But at the end of the day, the trip produced relatively modest results.
In the base metals markets, we had a mixed showing. Tin did best, adding almost 10% on the week on concern about lagging supply.
Anton Posner, CEO of Mercury Resources, will join Steel Market Update (SMU) and Aluminum Market Update (AMU) for a Community Chat on Thursday, May 14, at 11 am ET.
Nexans plans to acquire Republic Wire to expand its US low-voltage wire and cable business.
Aluminum executives say geopolitical tensions are reshaping logistics and trade flows, but demand remains stable as the supply chain adapts to ongoing disruptions.
Markets were all over the map last week. But once again, it was energy that commanded the most attention.
LME and Midwest premiums are rising, and a conflict in Iran is just one of several challenges the market is facing.
Things took an ominous turn after President Trump announced he would order the US Navy to block any vessels entering or exiting the Gulf. We suspect we will see another sizable bounce in crude and a resumed slide in both precious metals and base metals as the two parties now potentially resort to replacing talks with missiles.
We had another very sloppy week in the US equity markets, although commodities fared better. All three major equity indices are now in correction territory (down 10% or more from their highs) on account of both the Iran war and the rising interest rates the conflict is generating.
Rio Tinto's aluminum supply agreement with Prysmian highlights tightening redraw rod availability in North America as tariffs, smelter closures and cable demand reshape supply.