China’s aluminium scrap imports from overseas jump 4% in Q1’26

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As we look more closely into the aluminium industry of China, the leading exporter in the global aluminium supply chain, it appears to fall short in the aluminium scrap market. How do we know? China’s import data accumulated from the International Trade Administration offer evident pointers.

In Q1 2026, China sourced 526,380 tonnes of aluminium scrap from the world, which reflects a notable year-on-year surge of 3.92 per cent from the import volume of 506,546 tonnes in Q1 2025. The spike in imports prompts an in-depth tracking of the nation's aluminium scrap sources.

Annually, the import volume has shot up to 2.02 million tonnes in 2025 from 1.78 million tonnes in 2024, up Y-o-Y by 13.48 per cent.

Since 2025, China’s top three suppliers of aluminium scrap have been:

• Thailand, contributing 21.05 per cent to China’s import cumulative
• The European Union, shipping 19.34 per cent to China’s import cumulative
• The United Kingdom, exporting 13.14 per cent to China’s import cumulative

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1. Thailand to China

The largest supplier to China, Thailand has occupied the top position since 2025.  

Quarterly trade study shows:

Q1 2026 – 110,810 tonnes (USD 276.8 million), down 16.7 per cent Y-o-Y from Q1 2025

Q1 2025 – 133,018 tonnes (USD 289 million), up per cent Y-o-Y from 63,766 tonnes (USD 128.17 million) in Q1 2024

In 2025, Thailand supplied a cumulative 470,698 tonnes (USD 1 billion) of aluminium scrap to China, the figure rising Y-o-Y by a staggering 57.82 per cent from 298,243 tonnes (USD 622.85 million) shipped in 2024.  

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2. The EU to China

The EU occupied the second position in 2025, after remaining on top from 2023 to 2024.

Q1 2026 – 101,814 tonnes (USD 254.6 million), up 30.47 per cent Y-o-Y from Q1 2025

Q1 2025 – 78,037 tonnes (USD 170.87 million), up 4.38 per cent Y-o-Y from 74,764 tonnes (USD 149 million) in Q1 2024

In 2025, the cumulative volume of aluminium scrap shipped from the EU to China amounted to 348,607 tonnes (USD 772 million), recording a Y-o-Y surge of 16.83 per cent from the 298,397 tonnes (USD 625 million) traded in 2024.

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3. The UK to China

Similar to the top two exporters, the UK has risen to third place in 2025.

Q1 2026 – 69,157 tonnes (USD 169.83 million), up 13.75 per cent Y-o-Y from Q1 2025

Q1 2025 – 60,796 tonnes (USD 133.95 million), up 27.52 per cent Y-o-Y from 47,674 tonnes (USD 95.57 million) in Q1 2024

In 2025, the UK shipped a total of 245,313 tonnes (USD 541.86 million) of aluminium scrap to China, the figure climbing from 193,638 tonnes (USD 409.2 million) exported in 2024 by 26.69 per cent Y-o-Y.

As both the volume and value of aluminium scrap trade go up, making the three overseas markets prime suppliers to China, thereby deepening the nation’s increasing dependence on external sources to sustain its aluminium scrap flow becomes starkly evident.

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