The prices for aluminum mill scrap delivered US mills were 1-4¢/lb higher over the week as spreads diverged by grade on better mill inventories and a robust LME aluminum market.
The spread for mill-grade 1100 & 3003 clips widened by 0.7¢/lb to 12.7¢/lb under the three-month LME aluminum contract on Tuesday while the weekly Davis Index for the grade increased by 1.1¢/lb to 66.6¢/lb delivered US mill.
The spread for scrap 6063 was better at 10.6¢/lb under the three-month LME aluminum contract, while the index for the grade increased by 2.8¢/lb to 68.7¢/lb delivered US mill. The weekly spread for mill-grade MLC was wider at 27.9¢/lb, while the index for the grade rose by 1¢/lb to 51.4¢/lb delivered.
The index for mill grade painted siding rose by 1.1¢/lb to 49.3¢/lb, while its spread was slightly wider by 0.7¢/lb, at 30¢/lb under the three-month LME contract. The Litho sheet grade saw its spread widen by 0.7¢/lb to 16.3¢/lb while the Davis Index for the grade increased by 1.3¢/lb to 63¢/lb.
The three-month LME contract closed Tuesday at $1,748.5/mt up from $1,709/mt on July 28.
Bids for used beverage cans (UBC) scrap have found resistance from suppliers who believe the market is higher but have not been able to secure the level of pricing desired. According to mill suppliers UBCs pricing is at least a penny higher than the current bids.
The Davis Index for UBC’s moved up by 0.9¢/lb to 50.3¢/lb delivered, while the spread widened by 0.9¢/lb to 29¢/lb.
The UBCs supply chain was disrupted over the past few months as some scrapyards refused to collect the item on concerns of COVID-19 infections. However, canned beverage consumption is at an all-time high as more people stay at home because of the pandemic making more scrap readily available as supply lanes normalize, thus preventing mills from chasing this grade for now.