Nonferrous

• Xstrata’s 3d-quarter copper output down Oct 17, 2012

  Xstrata Plc’s mined copper production fell 16 percent year on year in the third quarter despite rising 2 percent from the second quarter, the company said Wednesday.

• MacTung tungsten mine permitting advances Oct 17, 2012

  North American Tungsten Corp. Ltd. has moved a step closer to completing the environmental assessment of its MacTung tungsten mine in Canada’s Yukon territory.

• Auto, aero to lift aluminum use: Kaiser Oct 17, 2012

  Kaiser Aluminum Corp. maintains its bullish forecast for the automotive and aerospace industries, president and chief executive officer Jack Hockema said Tuesday at the annual meeting of the Aluminum Association and Aluminum Extruders Council.

• Titanium Industries’ Paddock chosen as new ITA president Oct 17, 2012

  Brett S. Paddock has been elected president of the International Titanium Association (ITA).

• Base metals prices may see rally by end of 2012: analyst Oct 17, 2012

  Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange could rally by year-end, according to Fraser Phillips, managing director of global mining research at RBC Capital Markets.

• Japan sponge makers shift to low-grade input Oct 17, 2012

  Japanese titanium sponge producers, caught between high feedstock prices and titanium markets that have fallen below expectations this year, are shifting toward lower-grade feedstock in an attempt to reduce their costs, according to the president of Osaka Titanium Technologies Co. Ltd.

• Spot SHG zinc premiums rise Oct 17, 2012

  Free-market spot premiums for special-high-grade (SHG) zinc have risen slightly due to a reported shortage of available material, with 2013 contract prices also firming up.

• Commerce extends deadline in aluminum extrusions dumping case Oct 17, 2012

  The Commerce Department’s International Trade Administration (ITA) has extended the deadline to submit new information in an anti-dumping duty administrative review of aluminum extrusion imports from China.

• Abbott keen to limit impact of queues Oct 17, 2012

  The debate over London Metal Exchange warehousing has become as much of a constant as death and taxes, LME chief executive officer Martin Abbott told guests at the exchange’s annual dinner Tuesday.

• Floating premiums obstruct value-added aluminum talks Oct 17, 2012

  Manufacturers of value-added aluminum products haven’t been making much headway in terms of securing long-term supply contracts for next year, a European producer of value-added products told AMM sister publication Metal Bulletin.

• Nickel moving toward deficit without new major projects Oct 17, 2012

  The current oversupply of nickel could eventually disappear if big projects like Vale SA’s Goro in New Caledonia aren’t brought online, according to RBC Capital Markets’ managing director of global mining research.

• No contract cancellations, deferrals, says Codelco exec Oct 17, 2012

  Copper demand in certain segments is subdued, but Chilean producer Corporación Nacional del Cobre de Chile (Codelco) has had no contract cancellations or deferrals.

• Chile energy shortage to hit copper projects, says Keller Oct 17, 2012

  The vast number of new copper projects projected to come on-stream in Chile over the coming decade are likely to stumble due to energy supply concerns and other issues, according to the top executive of the world’s largest copper producer.

• Vale delays Clean AER project on cash issues Oct 16, 2012

  Vale SA is pushing back the expected completion date of its Clean AER (atmospheric emissions reduction) project in Sudbury, Ontario, to 2016 from late 2015 in order to "better position ourselves for success and to address short-term cash-flow constraints in light of current market conditions," a spokeswoman said.

• US aluminum shipment rate rises Oct 16, 2012

  U.S. aluminum distributors logged a slight increase in shipping rates in September, according to Metals Service Center Institute (MSCI) data.

• Extrusion JV garners mixed response Oct 16, 2012

  The proposed joint venture between Norsk Hydro ASA and Sapa Group has garnered mixed reactions from the sector, with many contending it will be largely positive for the North American extrusion industry but others questioning whether it gives the new downstream powerhouse too much pricing control.

• Aleris offering $400M in notes to fund China rolling mill Oct 16, 2012

  Aleris International Inc. has announced a private offering of $400 million in senior unsecured notes due in 2020 to help fund construction of its aluminum rolling mill in Zhenjiang, China.

• Freeport hopes for pro-business policies Oct 16, 2012

  Freeport-McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc. hopes the next U.S. government will support pro-business policies regardless of which candidate wins the election.

• Base metal prices expected to increase modestly in 2013 Oct 16, 2012

  Base metal prices are likely to rise modestly in 2013 despite risk factors that remain, according to Prestige Economics LLC president Jason Schenker.

• Kennecott's refined copper output spikes Oct 16, 2012

  Kennecott Utah Copper Corp.’s refined copper output nearly tripled in the third quarter following a successful second-quarter maintenance outage at the operation’s smelter, parent company Rio Tinto Plc said Tuesday.

• Globe challenges ruling on silicon metal imports Oct 16, 2012

  Globe Metallurgical Inc. is appealing the final results of an anti-dumping duty administrative review of imports of silicon metal from China from June 1, 2010, to May 31, 2011.

• DLA resumes tungsten offerings Oct 16, 2012

  DLA Strategic Materials offered 711,761 pounds (bulk) of tungsten ores and concentrates from its depots in Hammond, Ind.; Scotia, N.Y.; and Warren, Ohio. This is its first offering of the material under the basic ordering agreement format since sales were suspended in November.

• Warehouse deals distort copper prices Oct 16, 2012

  Copper prices are undergoing short periods of distortion due to warehouse financing deals, but the effects have been limited, according to Antofagasta Plc’s top executive.

• DLA sells 700 tons of ferrochrome in September Oct 16, 2012

  DLA Strategic Materials sold 700 tons of low-carbon ferrochrome for $1.85 million in September.