Industrial Metals Update Falling mine supply to boost zinc prices in 2016 Scheduled closure of some large depleted mines coupled with producer cutbacks in response to low prevailing prices will lead to a relative shortage of zinc concentrates and will curb the recent... 29th October 2015 · 1 min read
Metals Watch What, if anything, can futures curves tell us? While there has been much media coverage of the recent falls in oil and copper prices, the simultaneous slide in the prices of lead and zinc has not been so well documented. In this Metals & Mining... 27th October 2015 · 1 min read
Industrial Metals Update REE supply cuts set to push up prices Low rare earths (REE) prices seem to be pushing up China’s exports as previously-delayed purchases are ramped up. However, recent pledges by a number of Chinese REE producers that they would smelt... 27th October 2015 · 1 min read
Industrial Metals Update Iron ore prices to fall further on strong supply The ongoing ramp up in supply and ever-lower cash costs at the major producers suggest that the iron ore market will remain well supplied. With subdued steel demand and output, we expect prices to... 23rd October 2015 · 1 min read
Industrial Metals Update Across-the-board strength in China’s metals imports The latest data on China’s metals imports suggest that recent fiscal and monetary stimulus, particularly infrastructure spending, are starting to feed through to stronger commodity demand. 21st October 2015 · 1 min read
Metals Data Response Global Steel Production (Sep.) World Steel Association (WSA) data for September show a 3.7% y/y fall in global steel output, with declines in most major producing regions. This is a larger fall than last month, but the market... 20th October 2015 · 1 min read
Metals Data Response Global Aluminium Production (Sep.) According to the International Aluminium Institute, global aluminium output grew by almost 10% y/y in September. Excluding China, output rose by a modest 3% y/y. 20th October 2015 · 1 min read
Industrial Metals Update Steel prices to recover, but not until next year A combination of weak Chinese demand, destocking in North America and poor economic conditions in Brazil and the CIS is weighing on steel demand this year. At the same time, global output has been... 14th October 2015 · 1 min read
Industrial Metals Update How long can markets shrug off low stocks? For the most part, LME metal stocks have fallen since the start of September, in some cases to multi-year lows. However, concerns about demand continue to weigh on prices. We expect the low level of... 13th October 2015 · 1 min read
Commodities Weekly Further evidence that sentiment is bottoming out We do not expect the future paths to be smooth, but the rallies in commodity prices over the past week are consistent with the relatively positive views we have been expressing for some time. Indeed... 9th October 2015 · 1 min read
Commodities Update The turn is nigh (if it hasn’t already happened) We do not expect the future paths to be smooth, but the rallies in commodity prices over the past week are consistent with the relatively positive views we have been expressing for some time. We are... 9th October 2015 · 1 min read
Industrial Metals Update Consensus is moving towards a copper deficit next year Planned and unplanned cuts to copper supply now make it increasingly likely that the market will be in deficit next year (and possibly this year), even with very subdued demand projections. This... 8th October 2015 · 1 min read
Industrial Metals Update Can tin prices continue to outperform? Tin prices have risen recently, defying the generally negative sentiment towards metals. As we move into 2016, we expect stronger growth in demand to lead to further price gains. 7th October 2015 · 1 min read
Metals Chart Pack Investor sentiment deteriorates further Concerns about the scale of the slowdown in China continued to weigh on metals prices in September. The decision by the US Fed to delay the first interest rate rise only provided temporary relief. As... 5th October 2015 · 1 min read
Commodities Focus The impact of China’s rebalancing on demand for commodities The move away from commodity-intensive investment-led growth in China towards a more consumer-driven economy is often cited as sounding the death knell for commodities demand. However, we would argue... 2nd October 2015 · 1 min read
Industrial Metals Update Zinc’s fall from favour should be short-lived An unexpected spike in LME inventories in the last month has raised concerns about oversupply and contributed to a sharp drop in the price of zinc. However, stocks remain historically low and, with... 30th September 2015 · 1 min read
