The Davis Index for US brass scrap climbed for some grades and dropped for others while spreads narrowed on Friday.
The weekly Davis Index for 360-rod borings increased by 6.3¢/lb to $2.578/lb delivered US consumers and rose by 1.7¢/lb for brass radiators to $2.027/lb delivered.
The weekly Davis Index spread for the C-200 series alloy copper tightened by 2.8¢/lb to 12.7¢/lb under the Comex spot contract. Simultaneously, the C-200 series zinc spread narrowed by 1.2¢/lb to 6.8¢/lb under the LME Zinc cash contract.
The Comex spot copper contract dropped by 8.7¢/lb to $3.603/lb from its close on Jan 8, while the spot LME zinc official contract decreased by $146.95/mt from Jan 8 to close at $2,677.55/mt on Friday.
The Comex has remained volatile after closing at $3.70/lb on Jan 7, its highest peak since February 2013. On Friday, the Comex market weakened slightly and in turn tightened the spreads for C-200. However, the physical market for brass scrap remains robust with scrap ammunition and US Mint sales keeping sheet mills’ order books strong.