ASIAN MORNING BRIEF 12/06: Lead, zinc outlook positive in mixed LME trading; physical cobalt prices drop; Aqua Metals produces first commercial AquaRefined lead

The latest news and price moves to start the Asian day on Tuesday June 12.

Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange closed mostly lower at the end of trading on Monday June 11, with copper, nickel and tin prices recording losses while lead and aluminium made marginal gains. Read more in our live futures report.

Here are how prices looked at the close of trading:

Following a turbulent first half of the year marked by outbreaks of price volatility, forecasts suggest market sentiment toward LME zinc and lead are set to improve on brighter supply dynamics.

Physical cobalt prices fell again on June 8, faced with cheaper metal supplies, seasonally weaker spot demand and poor sentiment, market sources told Metal Bulletin.

Aqua Metals Inc has begun commercialization of its non-polluting electrochemical lead recycling technology with the production of pure AquaRefined lead.

Seaborne coking coal prices have risen to a more than two-month high, with Metal Bulletin’s fob Australia Premium Hard Coking Coal Index up 35% year on year on Monday, while supply concerns emerged as a key factor affecting the outlook for the market.

Saudi Arabian state-owned steel producer Hadeed Sabic has registered with Egypt’s General Organization for Export and Import Control to export rebar to the country, Egyptian sources told Metal Bulletin on Sunday.

Import prices for rebar in Singapore increased slightly over the past week amid improved spot demand.

China’s car production and sales extended their year-on-year growth in May but were both down month on month, the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers said on Monday.

What to read next
The publication of Fastmarkets’ European aluminium billet premiums assessments for Friday February 6 was delayed because of a procedural error. Fastmarkets’ pricing database has been updated.
Glencore’s share price fell sharply on Thursday February 5 after Rio Tinto confirmed it was no longer pursuing a potential merger, ending weeks of speculation about a combination that would have created one of the world’s largest mining companies.
The proposal to increase the publication frequency from monthly to weekly comes amid increased volatility of copper on the London Metal Exchange, while copper scrap discounts have been shifting on a more regular basis. This more frequent assessment will enable Fastmarkets to reflect market dynamics in a timelier manner, as well as capture more spot […]
Fastmarkets has corrected its assessments for Shanghai bonded nickel stocks on January 30.
Fastmarkets has corrected the rationale for its MB-AL-0346 Aluminium P1020A premium, in-whs dup Rotterdam, $/tonne that was published incorrectly on Thursday January 29.
Fastmarkets has corrected the rationale for its MB-AL-0299 aluminium 6063 extrusion billet premium, ddp Spain that was published incorrectly on Friday January 23.