Aluminium climbs on smelter shutdown, others slide

    Copper and other industrial metals, however, were pressured by a stronger dollar and persistent worries about a global economic downturn.

    Benchmark aluminum on the London Metal Exchange gained 0.9% to $2,413 a tonne by 1615 GMT.

    Aluminum, the most energy-intensive metal to produce, has eased in recent months along with other industrial metals due to disquiet about a global downturn hitting demand. It has shed 40% since touching a record high in early March.

    Norsk Hydro said on Wednesday it will close its majority-owned primary aluminum facility in Slovakia by the end of September because of high electricity prices.

    “This smelter news and the potential impact on supply is keeping prices supported even though there are still worries about the demand outlook,” said Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank in Copenhagen.

    “This development highlights the fact that this market is not only demand driven, but supply driven and increasingly challenged by these punitively high energy prices.”

    In China, the most-traded aluminum contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose as much as 4.3% in its biggest gain since October 2021, before easing slightly to trade 3.75% higher at 18,660 yuan a tonne.

    Power controls in China amid its worst heatwave in 60 years have also sparked concerns over metal supply in the world’s top producer.

    The southwestern Sichuan province ordered industrial users to suspend production from Aug. 15 until Aug. 20 to prioritize residential power supply, disrupting metal production including lithium, aluminum and zinc.

    Aluminum production in neighboring city Chongqing has also been affected. But market participants estimated a limited impact for now as it is not a major metal producing region.

    The dollar index gained after data showed U.S. consumer spending was steady in July, making metals priced in the U.S. currency more expensive for buyers using other currencies.

    LME three-month copper eased 0.7% to $7,924.50 a tonne, while U.S. Comex copper futures dropped 1.2% to $3.58 a lb.

    LME zinc lost 4% to $3,524 a tonne, lead fell 2.6% to $2,107.50, nickel shed 1.5% to $21,900 and tin slipped 0.6% to $24,450.

    For the top stories in metals and other news, click or ($1 = 6.7728 Chinese yuan) (Reporting by Eric Onstad; Additional reporting by Siyi Liu in Beijing and Mai Nguyen in Hanoi; Editing by Shounak Dasgupta and Shailesh Kuber)