US aluminum mill prices ticked up on Tuesday amid a stronger LME Aluminium market, while spreads were flat to wide depending on grade as scrap flows are anticipated to tighten moving into the winter months.
The spread for mill-grade 1100 & 3003 clips was flat at 4.8¢/lb under the three-month LME Aluminium contract on Tuesday, while the weekly Davis Index for the grade increased by 1.2¢/lb to 78.7¢/lb delivered US consumer. The index for 5052 climbed by 1.2¢/lb to 81.7¢/lb delivered, with the spread widening by 0.2¢/lb to 1.7¢/lb under the three-month LME Aluminium contract.
The spread for scrap 6063 was wider at 3.9¢/lb under the three-month LME aluminum contract, while the index for the grade increased by 0.8¢/lb to 79.5¢/lb delivered US consumer. The weekly spread for mill-grade MLC was wider by 0.1¢/lb at 27.5¢/lb, while the index for the category rose by 0.5¢/lb to 55.8¢/lb delivered US consumer.
Mill grade painted siding prices rose by 1.3¢/lb to 54¢/lb delivered, while its spread was tighter by 0.1¢/lb at 27.4¢/lb under the three-month LME Aluminium contract.
The three-month LME Aluminium contract closed at $1,891/mt on Tuesday, up by $63/mt from $1,823/mt on Oct 27.
The aluminum scrap market has been relatively balanced over the past few weeks. However, market participants expect scrap flows to tighten moving into the colder months due to the change in weather in the US Midwest, a resurgence of COVID-19 infections, and the results of the US presidential election, which concluded on Tuesday.