US buying spreads for mill and extrusion grade scrap continued to widen this week in slow business and stronger LME prices.
The official LME Aluminium cash price settled Tuesday at $2,740/mt ($1.242/lb), up by $26/mt from Aug 31.
Many mills were out of the market in the past week due to the increasing prices of scrap owing to spreads being based on the Midwest Transaction price. Most grades aren’t being traded actively but clips such as 1100 & 3003, along with MLC and siding, are still seeing limited deals. Participants expect the market to remain cold this week as buyers return from the Labor Day weekend. Current mill inventory levels do not have much demand, but supply has begun to contract gradually, which could lead to prices holding at these levels even if the LME corrects.
The weekly Davis Index spread for mill-grade MLC widened 2.4¢/lb to 72.6¢/lb under the Midwest transaction price. Outright prices declined by 1.7¢/lb from last week to 86.1¢/lb delivered US consumer.
Meanwhile, 5052 clips weakened 0.6¢/lb to 16.9/lb under Midwest while transaction prices for the grade rose 0.5¢/lb to $1.418/lb delivered. The spread for painted siding widened 1.6¢/lb to 73.6¢/lb under Midwest.
The spread for 6063 new, bare extrusion weakened by 1.4¢/lb to 15.2/lb under the Midwest transaction price. Outright prices for this grade slipped to 1.438¢/lb delivered US consumer, down 0.3¢/lb on a weekly basis.