Morning Bites (part 3)

🚷Impala Platinum cuts jobs amid low PGM prices, Reuters reports. Impala has not specified the number of workers it intends to cut. A 2nd major SA PGM player, Sibanye, has also recently declared a restructuring plan that could affect over 4,000 employees (~5% of its 2022 total workforce) in favor of cost reduction. We note that the Pd and Pt prices have declined by 40% and 16%, respectively, since early 2023, as the demand (mainly from the automotive sector) has been weak, while supply has remained generally stable over the same period. In our view, these two announced jobs cuts mean that the supply side has started to react to continuously weak metal prices. Despite the supply reaction, we do not see any substantial short-term positive triggers for PGM performance, as inflationary pressures remain tight, weighing on car sales, along with the strong appetite for EVs globally. Meanwhile, we believe that supply reaction might be protracted

#PGMs
https://metals-wire.com:3000/sector/PGM