China aluminium imports fall 14% Y-o-Y in November

China's imports of unwrought aluminium and aluminium products fell by 14 percent in November compared to the previous year, customs statistics revealed on Thursday.The General Administration of Customs reported that the country imported 240,000 metric tonnes.

This fall brought an end to the five straight months of Y-o-Y growth, pointing to year-end weaker downstream demand from all the major sectors like transportation, construction and packaging where aluminium is widely used. In addition, analyses suggest import appetite was poor because the arbitrage incentives remained muted.

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Despite the monthly drop, China’s total imports in the first 11 months of 2025 rose 4.4 per cent Y-o-Y to 3.6 million tonnes. The figures include primary metal and unwrought, alloyed aluminium. Domestic supply also stayed firm.China’s aluminium output rose 2.5 per cent year-on-year to 3.79 million tonnes in November, Bureau of Statistics data showed.

While aluminium inflows weakened, raw material imports surged. Bauxite imports jumped 22.9 per cent year-on-year to 15.11 million tonnes in November. Year-to-date bauxite imports climbed 29.4 per cent to 185.96 million tonnes.

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This trend replicated what was seen in January 2025 when luminium imports fell 24.3 per cent to 290,000 tonnes, but bauxite inflow rose 23.3 per cent to 11.62 million tonnes.