Aluminum-related stocks are surging in early trading on the 22nd. Concerns have emerged that U.S.-Iran cease-fire talks could fall through, which appears to be having an impact.

With Middle Eastern aluminum supplies constrained by the Iran crisis and prices surging, aluminum products are stacked at Shinyoung Precision Metal in Ansan, Gyeonggi Province, on the 19th. After the U.S. and Israel began airstrikes on Iran on the 28th of last month, the closure of the Strait of Hormuz has kept ships carrying aluminum raw materials from reaching smelters, prompting major smelters in Qatar and Bahrain to halt supply. Aluminum prices climb to their highest level in nearly four years on the 9th, and this month three-month aluminum futures on the London Metal Exchange (LME) rise about 8%. Aluminum is used widely, including in aircraft, electric wires, and beverage cans. /Courtesy of Yonhap News Agency

As of 9:39 a.m. that day, Sama Aluminium shares were trading at 74,800 won, up 27.86% (16,300 won) from the previous session.

Choil Aluminum is also up 19.17% (320 won) from the previous day to 1,989 won, while Namsun Aluminum is up 265 won (11%) from the day before to 2,675 won.

The Middle East produces 9% of the world's aluminum supply. Recently, as the outlook for U.S.-Iran cease-fire talks has become uncertain, geopolitical risks in the Middle East have intensified, and concerns over aluminum supply disruptions appear to be mounting.

Overnight, the mood strongly suggested the second round of U.S.-Iran cease-fire talks would collapse. Iran announced it would not send a negotiating team to Pakistan, and U.S. media reported that JD Vance, the U.S. vice president and head of the delegation, canceled his trip to Pakistan.

Then U.S. President Donald Trump said on his social media, "We will extend the truce until the leadership and representatives of Iran come up with a unified proposal, until discussions are concluded in some fashion."

Iran, however, said it would not recognize President Trump's announcement extending the truce.

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