11 July 2022 – The scrap trade continues to run at full speed and is at its highest level in two years in terms of volume. This is also evidenced by rising steel and stainless steel scrap prices. USA urges trading partners to stop importing Chinese goods from forced labour. And the US labour market remains robust in June 2022.
Scrap trading running at full speed
Trading volumes on the London Metal Exchange for scrap futures picked up significantly in the week ending 8 July. And is more than 76% higher than the same period from 2020, the highest level in two years. This has also pushed up scrap prices in the futures markets. Scrap contracts from July to September 2022 went up by up to 9.9% in London.
Chinese stainless steel scrap has also risen in price. Intensive scrap buying is also reported from other parts of Asia, such as Turkey and Pakistan, to replenish empty stocks.
US urges Canada, Mexico to stop importing Chinese goods made from forced labour
The United States is urging its North American economic partners to crack down on imports of Chinese goods made using forced Uighur labour.
US Trade Representative Katherine Tai met with Canadian Trade Minister Mary Ng and her Mexican counterpart in Vancouver on Friday to discuss the two-year-old revised North American Free Trade Agreement, known as the United States-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA).
The United States expects its trading partners to now also step up in this direction. In fiscal year 2021 alone, the United States intercepted more than 1,400 shipments of goods from a variety of countries that were produced using forced labour, according to U.S. Customs and Border Protection.
Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA)
The Uyghur Forced Labor Prevention Act (UFLPA) was signed into law by President Biden on 23 December 2021 and enforcement of the law took effect on 21 July 2022.
This Act specifies that the importation of goods, wares, articles, and merchandise mined, produced, or manufactured in whole or in part in the Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region of the People’s Republic of China, or produced by certain facilities, is prohibited under Section 307 of the Tariff Act of 1930, and that such goods, wares, articles, and merchandise products may not be imported into the United States.
Importers must comply with strict requirements if there is any suspicion that products may originate from Xinjiang Province.
This includes products made in other countries from Chinese intermediate products, such as steel or aluminium.
US labour market continues to grow
Despite economic challenges, the US labour market remains strong and continues to create new jobs. 372,000 new jobs were created in June 2022 alone, according to recent figures. The unemployment rate also remains low at just 3.6% for the fourth month in a row. Close to the lowest level in 50 years in spring 2020.
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Disclaimer: Many things here represent our opinion. Others are information from the Internet. We can therefore never claim to be correct or complete. And never base a business decision solely on the news you receive from us.
