Another year of record bauxite shipments from Guinea to China

Guinea continued to execute record bauxite shipments to China as demand from the world’s largest aluminium producer kept on gathering pace. Fresh shipping data shows that Guinea supplied about three-quarters of China’s bauxite needs in 2025, reinforcing its status as Beijing’s most important source of the raw material.

China imported a record 213 million tonnes of bauxite last year, according to figures from Ursa Shipbrokers in Piraeus. The volume was 24.5 per cent higher than the 171.1 million tonnes imported in 2024, pointing to the continued strength of China’s aluminium-producing industry. This consistent increase was significantly backed by the shipments loading at Guinea’s ports of Boffa and Kamsar, which together were responsible for around 72 per cent of global bauxite discharges in 2025.

Guinea’s shipments to China this year represent the fourth consecutive annual record since 2022. Ursa’s data also shows that exports from the country now make up about 88 per cent of all ocean-traded bauxite, underscoring the concentration of supply in a single exporter.

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Globally, bauxite discharges reached 241.4 million tonnes, up 21 per cent year on year, lifting the commodity’s share of dry bulk tonne-mile demand to nearly 9 per cent from 7 per cent a year earlier. The surge in volumes is also reshaping vessel deployment. Asia Shipping Media reports that Newcastlemax ships carried 36 per cent of global bauxite cargoes last year, followed by capesizes at 28 per cent and post-panamax vessels at 16 per cent.

Further data from Signal Ocean indicates seaborne bauxite flows rose 18 per cent to around 257 million tonnes, with China’s import share increasing from 83 per cent to 85 per cent. Supporting this trend, China’s primary aluminium output climbed to a record 40.4 million tonnes between January and November 2025, according to the International Aluminium Institute.

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