Manufacturing expansions, Airbus developments, low recycling rates, and more
There’s a lot of news to keep track of, so we’re lending a hand with highlights from the past month and what they mean for you.
Tag: Market
AMU Survey: UBC expectations fragment as scrap signals stabilized
December survey results show UBC price expectations becoming more debated even as scrap availability, inventory behavior, and Midwest premium expectations point toward steadier underlying conditions.
Midwest premiums: How high is high?
The Midwest premium has risen beyond replacement economics, driven by thin liquidity, depleted US inventories, slow import response, and limited near-term substitutes - raising questions about sustainability and forward risk.
How Venezuela figures into the aluminum sector
How Venezuela figures into the aluminum sector
New Year's resolutions for the aluminum Industry
There are some tactical resolutions in this list that are essential for the companies involved to achieve their financial results for 2026. Some are aspirational and may take more than 2026 to happen.
Aluminum Explainer: Options as a risk management tool
An explainer on how aluminum options function as price insurance, outlining common strategies and practical use cases for producers and consumers.
To hedge or not to hedge
As aluminum markets head into 2026, LME prices appear structurally supported while the Midwest premium looks increasingly risky and politically distorted, forcing buyers and sellers to hedge very differently.
Tomago smelter gets a lifeline
Australia is hardly alone in intervening in heavy industry.
Mexico's tariffs on China: Important move ahead of USMCA Talks
Mexico’s Congress authorized up to 50% tariffs on goods from countries with which it does not have a bilateral trading agreement. This is gives Mexico some cover over concerns it bowed to US pressure to block just Chinese goods flowing through Mexico to the US.
Misery loves company: The plight of low recycling in plastics
Despite competing fiercely for market share, aluminum and plastics share the same structural recycling failures rooted in incentives and policy resistance.