We are only a few days into the third quarter of 2020, but no benchmark premium has yet been set for the supply of aluminium ingots to Japan for the July-September period.
Market participants remain at loggerheads, unable to agree on a fixed number for this quarter. This means that the MJP aluminium quarterly premium cannot yet be published by Fastmarkets.
Typically, negotiations for the MJP quarterly benchmark conclude before the quarter starts, meaning that the third-quarter talks should have concluded by the beginning of July.
Deals have been concluded for third-quarter supply but the range has been abnormally wide, with the first deal heard at $85 per tonne cif Japan, although subsequent deals
were heard at $68 per tonne and $60 per tonne.
Over the past few days, there has been a revised offer heard from a producer at $80 per tonne, and some sources told Fastmarkets that they had heard a deal concluded at $79 per tonne.
"The market is now too quiet. We can expect more in such a wide range of offers, bids and deals," a trader said.