SMM data: Chinese aluminium capacity in November 2023

Crude oil fell slightly today. As of 15:02 CST, WTI oil and Brent oil fell 0.26% and 0.27% respectively. The U.S. dollar rose 0.37% as of 15:03.

SHANGHAI, May 31 (SMM) – After lithium carbonate prices have stabilised recently, the back-and-forth price negotiations between upstream and downstream enterprises in the lithium battery recycling market intensified.

Panasonic Chief Executive Yuki Kusumi said that China remains a highly valued market for the company, although geopolitics has made it more necessary to build strong supply chains in other regions.

Spot quotes in north China fell last week. Spot copper was quoted with discounts of 40 yuan/mt to premiums of 200 yuan/mt, or an average premium of 80 yuan/mt last Friday, down 20 yuan/mt from May 19.

Petroleum coke quotes generally stood stable this week.

Vietnamese electric car maker VinFast is recalling its first cars sold in the US due to a software error that caused the head-up display to malfunction, according to a statement on the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration's website.

On May 24, the Shanghai government said it invited General Motors (GM) to increase its investment, research and development in the city.

LME and SHFE base metals closed mostly with losses last night.

LME copper prices closed at $7,891/mt overnight, a decline of 2.35%. Trading volume was 27,000 lots and open interest stood at 254,000 lots. The most active SHFE 2307 copper contract finished at 62,990 yuan/mt, down 1.5%. Trading volume was 89,000 lots and open interest stood at 215,000 lots.

The Russian-Ukrainian conflict has been ongoing for several weeks and the global commodities market has seen dramatic volatility as a result. This comes after the market erupted in concerns over the supply of Russian nickel metal, with LME nickel prices surging above $100,000 per tonne in a single day.