Aluminium plate, sheet and strip consumption in China’s auto sector looks promising in 2021: Man Xu says

Aluminium plate, sheet and strip consumption in China’s automotive sector looks optimistic in 2021. But in the construction sector, it may see a limited growth, said Man Xu, Senior Analyst in SMM, at the 2020 Nonferrous Metals Industry Chain Annual Conference in Suzhou on Friday, December 4.

“Consumption for aluminium plate, sheet and strip from architectural decoration, transport, machinery equipment and packaging cans has the biggest market share. On the other hand, consumption from architectural decoration trended lower while from transport, mechanical equipment and packaging cans trended higher. Other sectors were stable,” Xu said.

According to Xu, aluminium plate, sheet and strip consumption in the architectural decoration sector is likely to account for 26.04 per cent in 2020. In the transport sector, aluminium flat rolled product consumption is expected to be 20.81 per cent, machinery equipment 20.81 per cent, and packaging cans 16.39 per cent.

In 2019, aluminium plate, sheet and strip production increased from 4.3 million tonnes in 2009 to 10.8 million, primarily driven by the increase in domestic demand. Near 80 per cent of China’s output was consumed in domestic market during 2009-18. Exports declined in the past two years with the implementation of anti-dumping measures in the European Union and India.

“The year-on-year growth rate has declined in recent years, but 2020 may see an increase. Output in 2020 is expected to be 10.5 million tonnes, up 4.17% from last year, which indicated that the industry is becoming mature,” Xu added.

Use of aluminium plate, sheet and strip in auto outer coverings thinned, but there is still a room for further growth. “Traditional models are generally updated once every 7 years. Given that the models remain unchanged, the aluminisation rate will not increase much. Aluminium plate/sheet is used in the doors and two covers of a car, which are divided into outer and inner plate/sheet.” Xu said.

Compared with cast aluminium, aluminium plate, sheet is not much used in passenger cars but there is room for growth in body panels. China’s auto production is nearly twice that of the United States, and its growth rate is ahead of the United States. For instance, China’s auto production in 2019 was 25.7 million units, while that in the US was 10.88 million units.

“The market demand for automotive ABS aluminium alloy sheet and strip in China has a large room for growth in the future,” Xu said.