ASIAN MORNING BRIEF 17/04: Aluminium prices continue to rise; LME allowing open Rusal positions until June 5; Vale's copper output falls in Q1

The latest news and price moves to start the Asian day on Tuesday April 17.

Aluminium on the London Metal Exchange continued its record-breaking rally by the close of trading on Monday April 16, soaring to a high of more than $2,400 per tonne ahead of the 5pm close. Read more in our live futures report.

Here are how prices looked at Monday's close:


The London Metal Exchange will allow open positions with Russian aluminium producer Rusal to remain open until June 5 and hedges to be unwound as long as payments are made into segregated accounts, it said in a notice to its members on April 16.

Vale's copper output in the first quarter of 2018 was down 13.2% from the same period last year, reflecting the company's decision to place some mines on care and maintenance and lower ore grades obtained at the Salobo mine in Brazil.

Chinese ferro-chrome prices were weighed down by a lack of buying support and falling prices on April 13, and market participants predicted a subsequent softening would trickle into Japan where demand is soft. At the same time, high-carbon ferro-chrome prices in the United States fell in a quiet trading week.

Minera Lumina Copper Chile has come to terms with unionized workers at its Caserones mine on a new labor contract, the company said late on April 13.

Turkish steelmaker Isdemir has started using an air-separation unit at its Iskenderun facility in southern Turkey, aiming to increase steel output at the plant by 300,000 tonnes per year.

Turkish domestic ship scrap prices have risen slightly with the latest uptick in imported scrap costs, while auto bundle scrap prices have remained comparatively steady over the past week, sources said on Monday.

Chinese export volumes of unwrought aluminium and aluminium products hit an eight-month high in March, according to preliminary Chinese customs data released on Friday.

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