21st October 2022: Base metal prices have fallen sharply this year, as Russia’s invasion of Ukraine sent shockwaves through financial markets. While demand growth has slowed across the complex, inventory levels remain surprisingly low, helped by supply side challenges. We believe that investor positioning has already discounted most of the bad news. In the year […]
October 21, 2022 - Dan Smith
Aggressive measures to tackle China’s COVID-19 resurgence have badly hit its economy, but Beijing remains resolutely committed to its zero-COVID approach. Along with a soft stimulus-response and deepening property sector weakness, this has undermined commodities demand prospects and triggered a pullback in prices. China’s supply-chain issues risk exacerbating global inflationary pressures and accelerating policy tightening by central banks.
April 27, 2022
Base metals prices have retreated from early-March extremes. Risk-aversion hit the complex despite tight underlying physical markets and feared disruption to Russian supply amid sanctions. Damaged confidence in the LME and liquidity issues following nickel’s price spike and trading halt, hopes for a diplomatic resolution to the Ukraine war, and risks to growth from higher […]
March 18, 2022
The threat of a Russian invasion of Ukraine has stoked geopolitical tensions between Russia, the US and its European allies. A military incursion and subsequent retaliatory sanctions could affect base metals markets via disruption to Russia’s metal supply, higher energy costs for Europe’s metal producers and macro-led risk-reduction. Background Russia has amassed a sizeable […]
February 3, 2022
On 18th January 2022, Amalgamated Metal Trading Ltd. (AMT) hosted a panel of leading industry analysts from BMO Capital Markets, CRU and Fastmarkets to discuss the key themes likely to drive base metal markets through 2022. We also provided a brief recap of base metal performance in 2021. The recording is available below. Moderating: […]
January 11, 2022
The spiralling cost of energy and emissions allowances in Europe continues to undermine the economics of Europe’s zinc production. Capacity reductions and smelter closures will exacerbate acute zinc supply pressures in Europe, where visible inventory is at critical lows. This should continue to underpin the LME zinc price, spreads and regional physical premiums in Q1 […]
December 22, 2021
Base metal availability and pricing remain sensitive to trends in supply-chain inventory requirements amid global shipping disruption. A bullwhip effect may be playing out in the global goods sector. This could weigh on prices if global freight issues ease during 2022. Growing barriers and risks to international metals trade may drive governments to develop or […]
December 10, 2021
Base metal prices have proved largely resilient to emerging risks to economic growth. This is amid persisting signs of acute physical tightness across the complex. Abnormally backwardated forward curves, sustained pressure on LME inventories, and elevated physical premiums are the clearest indicators. Backwardations Everywhere Notable tightness has developed across nearby LME spreads for all the […]
December 3, 2021
Why are metal prices plummeting? Base metals prices aggressively retreated in the second half of October after China’s coal price collapsed following government intervention. Coal’s rout suggests easing power rationing and lower energy costs for metal producers. Fresh visibility of the impact of power shortages and related supply-chain disruption on downstream industrial activity and, by […]
November 3, 2021