China’s aluminium imports jumped sevenfold Y-o-Y to stand at 391,297 tonnes in July 2020: Customs data

China, the world’s top exporter of aluminium, turned net importer for the first time in July 2020 since 2009. The country’s aluminium imports during the said month jumped nearly sevenfold year-on-year to record the second-highest level, found China customs data.

Arrivals of unwrought aluminium and aluminium products into China came in at 391,297 tonnes last month, the highest monthly total since April 2009, the General Administration of Customs said on Sunday, August 23.

In April 2009, China had imported 440,000 tonnes, up 570 per cent from July 2019 and 35.5 per cent from 288,783 tonnes in June 2020.

China’s import volume in July found higher than the export of 373,402.3 tonnes, showed the data. That means the country, by far the world’s biggest aluminium producer, emerged as a net importer of unwrought aluminium and aluminium products last month.

The surge in China’s July aluminium imports came amid a wide disparity between domestic aluminium prices, as demand rapidly recovered since the outbreak of the COVID-19 earlier this year, and lower international prices on the London Metal Exchange.

The spread between the two prices, known as an arbitrage, meant Chinese consumers - who usually have little need for foreign aluminium - were able to source metal more cheaply from overseas.