Weekly US aluminum export scrap prices were mixed on Thursday amid sluggish market activity.
Exporters struggled to procure scrap as domestic smelter and mill demand outpaced supply. At the ports, especially on the West Coast, finding containers is still a pressing issue among sellers who are currently paying higher freight costs due to the shortage. Demand from Southeast Asia has weakened due to muted ADC12 prices in Japan, impacted by the semiconductor shortage in the automotive industry.
The weekly Davis Index for zorba 95/2 fell by 1.3¢/lb to 73¢/lb fas US port while zorba 99/3 slipped by 0.3¢/lb to 74.2¢/lb fas.
Taint/Tabor moved up by 0.5¢/lb to 71.8¢/lb fas while Tense jumped up by 3.4¢/lb to 71.4¢/lb fas. The LME sensitive 6063 extrusion grade moved up by 4¢/lb to 90.5¢/lb fas while A356 settled at 86.9¢/lb fas, up by 2.1¢/lb due to limited domestic supply for both these grades.
The official LME Aluminium cash price settled Thursday at $2,208 ($1.01/lb), up by $16/mt from Mar 18.