n° 166 – May 2020

As Charles Dickens wrote in A Tale of Two Cities: “It was the best of times, it was the worst of times… the period was so far like the present period, that some of its noisiest authorities insisted on its being received, for good or for evil, in the superlative degree of comparison only.”

This is not the best of times but certainly the toughest of times for us all. The number of fatalities is continuing to climb and many front-line first-responders have made the ultimate sacrifice. Furthermore, country after country has implemented a lockdown covering all non-essential business activities; although some nations are gradually reopening their economies, both demand and supply have been wound down to a level that is not easy to bear.

Since our Convention in Istanbul has been postponed, we will be providing our members instead with online commodity sessions, thanks to the efforts and creativity of the BIR Secretariat during this difficult time. I am calling on Non-Ferrous Metals Division members - as well as all other members - to lend their support to the commodity programme; our attendance is the best way to show our appreciation of and support for BIR.

For our Division’s commodity session, which is scheduled for June 3 at 3pm CEST, we are honoured to welcome Eugen Weinberg, Senior Commodity Analyst at Commerzbank, who will be presenting his analysis of the post-COVID-19 macro economy and the impact on non-ferrous metals. Also during the session, all BIR Non-Ferrous Metals Division board members from 16 different countries/regions will offer updates on their markets and on logistics issues. Questions from the audience will also be welcomed.

Last but not least, be safe and be healthy.