Aluminium billet inventories in China extend their growth this week; SMM found

According to the latest update from Shanghai Metals Market, inventories of aluminium billet across major consumption areas in China have extended their growth this week. The reason could be the sluggish consumption in Guangdong area, SMM research found.

Stocks of 6063 aluminium billet across five major consumption areas have increased by 3200 tonnes from a week earlier to stand at 121,100 tonnes as of Thursday, September 13. The growth of some 6,500 tonnes in stocks across Foshan, Guangdong province mainly accounted for the increase.

Currently, the aluminium billet inventory in Foshan, Guandong is standing at 85,900 tonnes while that in Wuxi, Jiangsu at 11,300 tonnes. For more details, refer to the chart below.

According to another update from SMM, inventories of primary aluminium across eight major consumption areas in China have lowered by 38,000 tonnes from last Thursday to stand at 1.68 million tonnes, as of September 13. Limited deliveries to the warehouses primarily accounted for the further drop in inventories.

On Monday, September 10, the inventories were at 1.683 million tonnes after registering a week-on-week drop by 31,000 tonnes. This shows that today the primary aluminium inventories have dipped by 0.17 per cent from the previous day.

But despite the tight supply in the domestic market and lowered inventories across all the major consumption areas, the A00 aluminium ingot spot price has slumped by RMB 20 per tonne from RMB 14500 per tonne to RMB 14480 per tonne. The average prices are expected to range between RMB 14460 per tonne and RMB 14500 per tonne, with spot discount remaining at RMB 20 per tonne.

In the east, the ingot price has dropped today by RMB 30 per tonne to stand at RMB 14475 per tonne, in the south and north, the prices plunged by RMB 20 and RMB 40 per tonne, to clock at RMB 14620 per tonne and RMB 14490 per tonne, respectively.