51
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sign magazine | nr. 7 oktober 2017
CONTRIBUTED BY
* Ralf Schmitz, German non-ferrous
trade association VDM (Europe)
* Robin Latchem
51recyclinginternational.com | January/February | 2023
continue to decline. Analysts are posi-
tive. According to Goldman Sachs,
aluminium prices will rise this year due
to tighter supply and increasing
demand from China. Goldman Sachs
analyst Nicholas Snowdon expects the
aluminium market to move to a deficit
of 1.6 million tonnes compared to 500
000 tonnes a year ago. Because of the
currently weak dollar, scrap prices on
a dollar basis are around 10% higher
than on a euro basis in Europe.
COPPER
Copper has recently become signifi-
cantly more expensive in London, where
LME prices were around US$ 9 245 per
tonne. Apparent warehouse stocks are
very low at around 80 000 tonnes.
Traders report that demand is currently
very high and scrap metal is sometimes
difficult to obtain on the market.
Data from the EU Statistical Service in
Brussels is interesting. European coun-
tries imported 15 625 tonnes of
refined copper and alloys from Russia
in November despite the war, almost
unchanged from the previous month.
Many market participants see plenty
of potential in copper. The VDM sur-
vey revealed that around 55% of the
traders expect the red metal to rise in
the coming months, only 10% see
prices falling and 35% anticipate a
stagnant market.
LEAD
LME listings for lead continued to be
above the US$ 2 000 per tonne mark,
most recently around US$ 2 145 per
tonne. It is noteworthy that scrap pric-
es are occasionally higher than the
LME quotations because, at least in
the case of statistical reports, scrap
prices do not adapt as quickly to the
current quotations in London.
NICKEL
At US$ 28 800 per tonne, nickel
remains below the US$ 30 000 mark,
which the trade sees as a sign of a
renewed stable market . LME stocks
were last at 51 756 tonnes. Like cop-
per, nickel is rated positively by trad-
ers in the VDM survey with 47.4%
expecting prices to rise, 15.8% seeing
weaker prices and 36.8% expecting
them to remain unchanged.
ZINC
Zinc has remained expensive.
Quotations were most recently around
US$ 3 425 per tonne. LME stocks have
continued to fall sharply and were
recently only 18 650 tonnes. Trade has
run smoothly and deals have been
limited to deliveries until March. The
high prices mean that buyers for zinc
processors are still cautious about
ordering.
NON-FERROUS
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