US secondary aluminum alloys producers who were looking to push pricing higher hit a bump this week as demand in China tapered off.
The Davis Index for A380.1 remained at 67¢/lb on confirmed loads on Friday despite offers at 68¢/lb as buyers pushed back on higher prices. However, producers are still hoping to get to the 70¢/lb-mark for A380.1 to balance the increase in raw material costs for the past two weeks.
The Davis Index for A319.1 remained at 74¢/lb, while A356.1 was flat at 87¢/lb. The Index for A360.1 was unchanged at 84¢/lb and A413 and B390, remained at 83¢/lb and 86¢/lb, respectively.
Despite the drop in the three-month LME aluminum contract, smelters found themselves short on material and had to pay more than they wanted to procure the scrap needed to complete orders.
The three-month LME aluminum contract closed Friday at 78.06¢/lb, down slightly from last week’s close at 78.20¢/lb. Two weeks ago, the same contract closed at 80.96¢/lb.