Aluminium hits near four-year high as Iran war fuels supply fears

Aluminum rose to the highest in almost four years as escalating hostilities in the West Asia worsened the supply outlook from the region, while copper and other industrial metals fell on falling risk appetite.

 

Aluminum rose as much has 1.6 per cent to $3,499.50 a ton, the highest since April 2022, on the London Metal Exchange, following a gain of almost 10 per cent last week as the war snarled shipments shipments from the Persian Gulf. The region accounts for about 9 per cent of global supply, and traders are bracing for more disruptions.

 

Buyers of the metal in the US are rushing to secure alternative cargoes from Asia after at least two major smelters in the West Asia — one in Qatar and one in Bahrain — were forced to suspend deliveries. 

 

 

Crude oil spiked about 20 per cent on Monday as the war curbed more production, reflecting deepening worries around the duration of the war and its impact on the global economy. Broader financial markets tumbled on Monday as investors avoided risk assets.  

 

A “prolonged war will hurt aluminum supplies further,” said Gao Yin, an analyst at Shuohe Asset Management Co. Many people are buying aluminum and selling other industrial metals in the near term, she added.

 

On Sunday, Iran pressed attacks on neighbors, while Israel struck fuel depots in Tehran and threatened the Islamic Republic’s power grid. President Donald Trump warned the US would consider targeting areas that weren’t previously aimed at. The attacks will continue “until they surrender or, more likely, completely collapse!” he said in a social media post.

 

Aluminum rose 0.7 per cent to $3,4670.50 a ton as of 9:40 a.m. in Shanghai. Copper fell 1.8 per cent to $12,637 a ton and nickel dropped 3.1 per cent to $16,920 a ton.