China to keep importing bauxite as aluminium demand grows

China is expected to remain the world's largest consumer of aluminium and will thus continue importing huge amounts of bauxite.

China is both the largest consumer and importer of bauxite in the world, accounting for approximately half of global imports of the aluminium-making ingredient.

Italian broker Banchero Costa said in a recent report that Chinese bauxite demand growth continues to outpace domestic production growth, increasing import dependency.

Chinese bauxite production increased by almost 20% over the last five years while imports rose by more than 80% during the same period. Chinese domestic bauxite is often of lower quality and more expensive than imported supplies, further boosting import demand.

Annual aluminium consumption in China reached more than 27 million tonnes in 2014, accounting for almost half of global consumption. Aluminium consumption in China has grown on average by 14% per year over the past five years, far outpacing growth in steel consumption. Aluminium consumption per capita has almost doubled over the past five years from more than 10 kg per capita in 2009 to almost 20 kg per capita in 2014.

China's annual bauxite import volumes peaked in 2013, as Chinese refineries built up stockpiles ahead of the implementation of the Indonesian unrefined mineral export ban in January 2014. The number of imports to China rose by 78.5% in 2013 to 71 million tonnes, before dropping in 2014 to 36 million tonnes, or almost half.

Until 2013 Indonesia was the largest supplier of bauxite to China, accounting for approximately 70% of bauxite imports to China. Since the Indonesian ban, Australia's ratio of total bauxite imports to China has increased; in the first half of 2015 Australia accounted for 42% of bauxite imports to China. Other significant suppliers included Malaysia and India, with 35% and 16%, respectively.