DAILY: Chinese spot alumina prices slip

On Thursday, the national average price for metallurgical-grade alumina with a purity exceeding 98.6  per cent eased by RMB 5 per tonne (USD 0.7 per tonne) from Wednesday to RMB 2,860 per tonne including the 13  per cent VAT, according to Mysteel's daily assessment.

Behind the slight decline was mainly the reduction in offering prices across the country's five major alumina production regions. Mysteel's assessed prices in Shandong, Henan, Shanxi, and Guizhou provinces and in the Guangxi autonomous region all dropped by RMB 5 per tonne on the day to sit between RMB 2,775 per tonne and RMB 2,935 per tonne.

Explore- Most accurate data to drive business decisions with 50+ reports across the value chain

Although some alumina sellers held firm to their offers, market sources remarked that some primary aluminium smelters continued to push for discounts during purchase negotiations as mounting inventories of the raw material are exerting downward pressure on spot quotations.

Read More: NBS: China's Jan-Oct alumina output rises 8% Y-o-Y despite Oct drop

Trading activity remained limited in the spot market yesterday, with Mysteel not hearing of any concluded deals.

In contrast, alumina futures prices in Shanghai rebounded overnight after daytime losses. The most-traded January 2026 contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange closed Thursday's nighttime session 0.18 per cent higher at RMB 2,737 per tonne by 1 a.m. Friday, after the 1.26  per cent fall recorded by the end of Thursday's daytime trading.

Must read: Key industry individuals share their thoughts on the trending topics

Note: This news is published under a content and exchange agreement with Mysteel