Supply short across the board

Markets continue to trade within ranges that aren't very conducive to much excitement. Maybe that's not all a bad thing. All grades of non-ferrous scrap are in short supply, and buyers from around the world are scrambling to procure metal to feed furnaces that are showing increased activity as the demand for their products improves.

Copper is a good example. Discounts for copper scrap have contracted a lot in the past three or four months - they are around half of what they had been late last year and in the early parts of 2010. While no one knows what to expect as we move forward, it certainly appears that good solid demand for copper and the rest of the sector will continue well into the traditionally quieter months of the year.

We are pleased that we will have three excellent presentations in Istanbul: Robin Bahr, a veteran industry analyst who works for Calyon; Sedat Göksu of Turkish Özel Copper Company who will give an insight in the domestic copper market; and George Voyadzis of Halcor, the large Greek industrial group that is heavily involved with many aspects of the international copper market. I know that our presenters will provide interesting and current information about our commodities.

See the monthly world wide market update in our Members only section with reports from key countries.