Non-Ferrous World Mirror for October 2014 released

BRUSSELS (Scrap Monster): The Bureau of International Recycling (BIR) has released the Non-Ferrous World Mirror for October 2014, which states that geopolitical tensions and conflicts have continued to drag the non-ferrous metals markets worldwide.

The protests in Hong Kong have aggravated the weak trade condition in China. Customs data points to sharp fall in imports of non-ferrous scrap by China. Shanghai reported nearly 28% decline in imports of aluminum scrap during the initial nine months of the year. Meantime, Tianjin’s aluminum scrap import volumes tumbled 48% during this period. The country has announced that Category 6 import permits henceforth shall be issued by respective provincial authorities.

The overall volume of secondary non-ferrous metals has declined sharply in India. The demand for aluminum alloy remained strong in Japan, despite year-on-year decline in car production. The aluminum alloy demand is unlikely to sustain unless the domestic sales improve in the forthcoming months.

The scrap export volumes from the Middle East region expanded due to Ramadan.

The scrap operations in Brazil hold high inventory levels. The weak economic situation in the country may further add to worries of non-ferrous metals market in the country. The Mexican anti-money laundering investigations have crippled the country’s recycling sector business. The scrap export volumes by the US remained robust, BIR noted.

The non-ferrous metals market look promising in South Africa, with the government permitting shipment of copper and aluminum scrap without restrictions.

The market conditions in the Oceania and Europe have become extremely difficult. Purchase volumes have witnessed huge drop in the region.

Aluminum scrap demand continued to remain strong in Italy.

Russia’s copper-content non-ferrous scrap exports have increased significantly during the year.