Japan

Japan’s new government under Prime Minister Shigeru Ishiba has approved a major economic stimulus package. The Cabinet is trying to restructure taxation, including a potential rise in the minimum salary threshold for income tax. In other key developments, the relaxation of Chinese import restrictions has had a negative impact on the availability of scrap.

In the copper market, the tightening of restrictions by the Malaysian authorities has led to a reduction in the volumes imported from Japan. As for aluminium, a scarcity of available material has resulted in record-high prices for scrap.