News

The government has announced that they will be putting as new ‘metal theft task force’ into place in an effort to curb the metal thefts that have blighted the Vale and Cotswolds areas in recent months. The scheme will cost the Government £5 million and will include an increased focus on scrap metal industry regulation in addition to possible changes … Read More

The demand for metals in China is expected to slow throughout 2012, with their demands for copper and aluminium being reduced. The country will still likely see a growth in demand, however it will not compare to last year’s growth and there is even a chance that demand may fall.

Lead demand in China is increasing so much that the global glut in the metal that has been experienced in recent years is actually on the wane as the country continues to buy record amounts of lead to make batteries for cars, electric bicycles and emergency lighting.

Despite the fact that silver prices have been fairly volatile in recent months, at least one expert is predicting that we may see an upswing in investor demand for the metal as a safe haven asset in the new year.

The steel and metal industries in Jafza, Dubai have seen an increase in the past year, registering a growth of 14% during 2010 when compared against 2009. The figures are being put down to an increased level of trade in iron, steel, cement and plastering materials, with the metals in particular helping to lead to an increase.

The US metal recycling company Commercial Metals Co (CMC) have recently announced that they have rejected a buyout offer from billionaire investor Carl Icahn. Mr Icahn had offered $1.73 billion for the company, however CMC claimed that the offer was opportunistic and severely undervalued the company.

An accounting company has recently warned metal industry leaders that a number of core manufacturers have a “ticking time-bomb” hanging over them due to an increasing shortage in rare earth metals.

Scrap metal firms in the UK have announced that they will fight recent attempts to ban companies from purchasing scrap metal using cash, claiming that the recently proposed bill would simply make it more difficult to purchase legal scrap metal and thus redirect companies towards the black market.

The metal products industry is expecting a downturn in business during the next quarter of a year, thanks to many companies being wary of the looming debt crisis and political dysfunction throughout Europe.

The Lancashire based family that runs the metal manufacturing group Weston is set to collect around £54 million after the company was purchased by the aerospace group Senior, who will utilise their experience in working with Airbus components.