Morgan Stanley ups aluminium price forecast

Seoul

MORGAN Stanley has boosted its aluminium price forecast for next year by 8 per cent as increasing use of the lightweight metal in US car manufacturing leads global demand growth while producers continue to cut output.

The industrial metal will rise to US$2,072 a tonne in 2015, analyst Joel Crane wrote in a report on Wednesday. This year's forecast was also increased by 3 per cent to US$1,893 a tonne, it said. Prices on the London Metal Exchange (LME) have averaged about US$1,870 a tonne so far this year. The bank also raised its 2014 estimates for nickel and zinc by 2 per cent each.