After seeing a short-term bullish rebound in July, aluminum prices began to modestly decline again in early August. All in all, the rebound was insufficient to suggest a bullish reversal. As such, global aluminum prices remain within a macro downtrend despite recent directional uncertainty. The Aluminum Monthly Metals Index (MMI) dropped by 2.4% month over month. Before Russian energy giant Gazprom decided to cut Nord Stream 1 gas flows to 20%, Europe had already shuttered roughly half of its aluminum smelting capacity. According to Alcoa CEO Roy Harvey, high energy prices mixed with low aluminum spot prices in June ... (full story)