China’s primary aluminium imports during Jan-Aug’22 record a plunge of 71% to 297,600 tonnes

According to the General Administration of Customs, China’s primary aluminium import amounted to 49,300 tonnes in August 2022, reflecting a downfall of 3.35 per cent month-on-month and 53.3 per cent year-on-year. That brought the total imports during January-August to 297,600 tonnes, a year-on-year plunge of 71.1 per cent.

The net import in August stood at 43,200 tonnes after shrinking by 0.43 per cent from the previous month. On a year-on-year calculation, the net import in the said month shrank by 58.9 per cent. During January-August, China’s net imports of primary aluminium totalled 107,200 tonnes, down by 89.54 per cent from the corresponding period of the last year.

Russia was the leading exporter of the metal, supplying 42,000 tonnes, which accounted for 84.5 per cent of China’s total imports in August. In the first eight months of the year, Russia exported 231,000 tonnes, taking up 77.5 per cent of the total. Compared to this, the import proportion from Iran and Malawai was small in July and August but has a prospect for growth in the future.

SMM attributes the strong possibility of growth in Iran’s primary aluminium export to China to the expanded aluminium production capacity. According to the data shared by the Iranian Mining Development and Innovation Organization, aluminium ingot production in Iran totalled 538,600 tonnes throughout Iranian calendar year 1400. That was up by 20 per cent year-on-year.

China’s primary aluminium exports stood at 6,100 tonnes in August, registering a decline of 21 per cent month-on-month but an increase of 1,425 per cent over a year.