China hits 201Mt bauxite imports in 2025 as major shifts seen in African regions like Guyana and Sierra Leone
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Is China’s aluminium industry gradually finding itself more dependent on overseas suppliers for a critical raw material? That question becomes difficult to ignore when the 2025 numbers come into focus. During the year, China’s bauxite imports climbed to 201 million tonnes, rising from 159 million tonnes in 2024-an increase of about 26.5 per cent-clearly pointing to stronger reliance on external supply chains.
China produced around 87 million tonnes of bauxite in 2025, while demand stood in the range of 232.4–278.8 million tonnes. That created a structural gap of around 191 million tonnes, which imports increasingly had to bridge, a trend closely analysed in AL Circle’s Global Bauxite & Alumina Market Forecast to 2036: Supply–Demand, Trade Flows & Price Outlook report.
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