Europe holds 10% of global aluminium extrusion demand, supported by Germany’s Constellium, France’s Hydro Extrusions & Italy’s Metra
Across Europe, aluminium extrusion has become closely woven into some of the region’s biggest industrial and construction markets. From automotive and transport to buildings and industrial applications, extruded profiles are finding demand across a wide range of sectors. This is reflected in Europe’s position in the global market: the region accounted for 12 per cent of global aluminium extrusion capacity, making it the second-largest regional contributor after China. At the same time, Europe represented 10 per cent of global aluminium extrusion usage, out of total global usage of 35.35 million tonnes . With production capacity and usage shares relatively close, Europe’s extrusion capacity and consumption are broadly at par. If we break down Europe’s 10 per cent share of global aluminium...
H1 2026 sees more renewable energy than ever: Here’s a region-by-region guide to renewable energy supply in the recent past
In the first half of 2025, humanity generated more electricity from renewables than from coal for the first time ever. What led to it? It was possible only because of two decades of falling solar panel prices, taller wind turbines, and governments finally treating clean power like an economic opportunity instead of a favour to the planet. But the renewable energy scenario cannot be portrayed as a single global story. To get the full picture, one has to connect dozens of regional stories moving at wildly different speeds. Some countries are already powered almost entirely by sun, wind and water. Others are still warming up. Here is a tour of how renewable energy supply looks across the world’s regions right now, and who is actually leading the charge. The global scorecard: Renewable energy...
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Rare earths market turns volatile as US intervenes and China tightens control
The global rare earth metals market is undergoing a major market shift, as US price interventions, Chinese export restrictions, and surging demand disrupt supply chains and compel countries to rethink their strategies. In mid-July, the US took a bold step to challenge China’s dominance in rare earths. The Department of Defence signed a multi-billion-dollar deal with MP Materials, guaranteeing a minimum price of USD 110 per kilogram for neodymium-praseodymium (NdPr) oxide. This figure is almost double the prevailing China-based market price of around USD 60 per kilogram. The move is designed to boost domestic production of key materials for EV motors, wind turbines, and defence systems. Analysts are calling it a game-changer, predicting that this new price floor will become a global...
GACC: China's bauxite imports climb 34% Y-o-Y in July
China imported 20.06 million tonnes of all types of bauxite in July, higher by 34.2 per cent from the same month last year and by 10.7 per cent from June, according to the latest data from the country's General Administration of Customs (GACC). For the first seven months, total bauxite imports reached 123.3 million tonnes, marking a surge of 33.7 per cent from last year's January-July period, the GACC data showed. Guinea remained China's largest bauxite supplier for the seventh month, accounting for 79.5 per cent of July's total by shipping 15.94 million tonnes. The volume was higher by 19.6 per cent from June and by 52.7 per cent from a year earlier. The on-month increase was mainly attributed to accelerated bauxite shipments in mid-May ahead of the West African country's rainy season,...
From €15.6B to €2.8B: Eurozone’s June trade surplus collapses under tariff pressure
The European Union’s vaunted export engine is sputtering under the combined weight of tariffs, softer demand, and eroding competitiveness. June 2025 marked a dramatic turning point: according to ING’s latest analysis, the bloc’s seasonally adjusted trade surplus collapsed to just EUR 2.8 billion, down from EUR 15.6 billion in May. Eurostat’s official, unadjusted figures tell a similar story, showing the surplus narrowing to EUR 7.0 billion in June from EUR 20.7 billion a year earlier. Image source: https://wjjh.blog/ The headline numbers mask an even more telling shift. Exports from the single currency area rose a negligible 0.4 per cent year-on-year to EUR 237.2 billion, while imports surged by nearly 7 per cent to EUR 230.2 billion. On a monthly basis, exports contracted by 2.4 per...
India eases SRVA rules, fuels rupee trade and de-dollarisation talk
India is at the centre of global trade discussions after reports suggested that the Reserve Bank of India (RBI) had issued a circular enabling BRICS nations to settle 100 per cent of their trade in Indian Rupees (INR). Analysts argued that such a shift could weaken the US dollar’s dominance in international trade and strengthen BRICS’ collective bargaining power. Though there is no such official mandate for BRICS to conduct all trade in rupees. Instead, several outlets noted that the RBI has relaxed norms by allowing banks to open Special Rupee Vostro Accounts (SRVAs) without prior approval, a move aimed at promoting INR-based trade at a time when US tariff measures continue to create uncertainty for BRICS countries. The latest circular, issued on August 5, 2025, builds on an earlier...
Aluminium dross recovery and metal extraction: What to expect in 2025
The global aluminium industry stands at a critical juncture where efficiency, sustainability, and resource recovery are shaping new business priorities. As per recent business market research, the aluminium sector — formed of primary aluminium smelters, secondary aluminium facilities, and downstream processing plants — generated an estimated 4.78 million tonnes of dross in 2024. Source: AL Circle This figure reflects the inescapable byproduct of aluminium melting, but it also highlights opportunities for resource recovery and value creation. Aluminium dross generation: Regional market analysis China, the world's largest producer of aluminium, continues to dominate global dross output as per rule, accounting for nearly 47 per cent of total generation in 2024. The Rest of Asia-Pacific...
GACC: China's alumina exports surge 64% Y-o-Y in Jan-Jul
China exported a total of 1.57 million tonnes of alumina, including metallurgical-grade and other types, during January-July 2025, shooting up by 64.3 per cent from the same period last year, according to new data released by the country's General Administration of Customs (GACC). Image source: https://www.renwa-abrasive.com/ In July alone, Chinese alumina exports reached 229,448 tonnes, marking a 56.4 per cent year-on-year jump and a 34.2 per cent on-month increase, the GACC data showed. Most of the July shipments from China were supplied to Rusal, a Russian aluminium giant based in Moscow, according to market insiders. Russia, Oman, and South Korea ranked as China's top three export destinations last month, accounting for 88.3 per cent, 4.8 per cent, and 2 per cent of total exports,...
Rising costs vs rising revenues – the paradox of the new 50% steel and aluminium derivative tariffs
Six months into Donald Trump’s 2025 tariff regime and it seems to be a never-ending roller-coaster journey with new sets coming in. So, what’s the update this time? More than 400 additional aluminium and steel product categories have come under the fold of 50 per cent tariffs. What are included? Auto parts, auto components, railcars construction materials, wind turbines specialty chemicals, and household items like refrigerators, freezers, dryers, and furniture components. In short, anything that contains or is contained in aluminium and steel. Brian Baldwin, vice president of customs at Kuehne + Nagel International AG, quipped anything and everything that looks shiny, metallic, or remotely like aluminium or steel, is included in the new list of product categories hit by tariffs. The new...
Aluminium powers India-Japan alliance
There is a long history of economic relationships between India and Japan. The key events that fortified this relationship were Japan's contributions to India in the steel sector in the 1950s and Japan's direct investments in the IT sector in the 1990s, and now Japan is beginning to depend on India for aluminium sector supply. India is developing as a reliable provider for Japan's aluminium supply. In 2024, Japan imported nearly USD 337 million (UN COMTRADE) worth of aluminium from India, one of the top four suppliers. This has not happened by accident. Changing geopolitical scenarios, sanctions that included Russia and the need for cleaner production have opened up new space for India's manufacturers. Why aluminium matters to Japan Japan's major industries, comprising transport,...
India’s aluminium push vs renewable energy mandate: Can both goals align?
Just when the Indian aluminium industry is prioritising its production, aiming to increase it by sixfold to achieve more than 30 million tonnes per annum of output from the present 4.2 million tonnes, the mandate issued by Renewable Consumption Obligation seems to have dampened the spirit because the mandate says the captive power consumers must derive 29.91 per cent of electricity from renewable sources and scale it up to 43.33 per cent by FY2030. On paper, this mandate is a well-meaning policy designed to support the Indian manufacturing industry to decarbonise its production, but in case of aluminium, some are of the opinion that it contradicts the country’s ambitious production dream and may even stall the progress it seeks to accelerate. Critics warn that aluminium smelting requires...
Tariff tsunami hits Karnataka’s aluminium extrusion industry
Karnataka’s aluminium extrusion sector, once a steady contributor to India’s industrial ecosystem, is facing its toughest test in decades. A convergence of global trade shocks, inclusive of but not limited to the 50 per cent tariff imposed by the United States under President Trump, along with a steady influx of cheap Chinese imports, has left extrusion units in the state squeezed from both ends. Image source: https://rupiko.in/ For an industry heavily dependent on exports and sensitive to cost fluctuations, the impact has been immediate and severe. India exported nearly 200,000 tonnes of aluminium to the US in FY2024, valued at USD 894 million. Among the cumulative volumes, India’s downstream export volume to the US accounted for 84,850 tonnes. It inflated from 53,633 tonnes in 2020 (a...
From Asia to Africa: are new refining hubs redrawing the alumina map?
Alumina production in Asia (including China) and Africa continued to rise in the first half of 2025, but fresh data from the International Aluminium Institute (IAI) indicates signs of cooling by mid-year. With China still dominating global output, new projects in Indonesia, India, and Africa are reshaping the supply landscape, as governments in bauxite-rich regions tighten rules to encourage local refining. In the first half of 2025, alumina production across Asia and Africa reached 49.07 million tonnes, a 6.1 per cent increase from 46.26 million tonnes in the same period of 2024 and a 10.5 per cent rise from 44.41 million tonnes in 2023. The year began on a strong note, with output including China at 8.58 million tonnes in January, but volumes slipped to 8.03 million tonnes by June,...
Oscilante, mas estável: taxa de reciclagem de latas de alumínio no Brasil cai 2,7%, mas permanece acima de 95% há 15 anos
O sistema de reciclagem bem estruturado do Brasil mais uma vez impulsionou a taxa de reciclagem de latas de alumínio do país para impressionantes 97,3%. Há mais de 15 anos, o Brasil mantém consistentemente uma taxa superior a 95%, resultado não apenas de uma forte infraestrutura de reciclagem, mas também de um profundo senso de compromisso com a sustentabilidade, que incentiva o consumo de latas de alumínio. Em 2024, as vendas de latas no Brasil cresceram 7,6%, totalizando 34,8 bilhões de unidades, contra 32,3 bilhões no ano anterior. Por trás desse cenário, o progresso econômico constante também é um fator que impulsiona o consumo de latas de alumínio. Segundo o Banco Mundial, o Brasil, com uma população de 205,3 milhões, registrou um PIB per capita real de US$ 10.616 em 2024, contra US$...
Barter creeps back into trade as Russia and China rewrite the rules
History has repeated itself as Russia, after the 1990s, has returned to barter deals owing to geopolitical predicaments. Not a generic practice yet, but the initiation of barter deals commenced at the Kazan Expo business forum. Chinese companies cited settlement issues and Russian demands that they bring production to Russia as major issues hindering the development of bilateral trade. Image Source: Wikipedia “We offer innovative cooperation models aimed at reducing settlement risks,” Xu Xinjing from Hainan Longpan Oilfield Technology Co. Ltd told Reuters through a translator, adding that “we offer a model of barter trade.” In exchange for the power equipment, his company wants to receive Russian shipbuilding metal alloys like aluminium and steel. “In the current conditions of limited...
Global Aluminium Ingot Prices tumble in Q2 2025 amid tariffs, oversupply, and weak demand
Aluminium markets endured a turbulent first half of 2025, with ingot prices slumping sharply in the second quarter across North America, Asia-Pacific, and Europe. Oversupply, sluggish downstream demand, and rising inventories all weighed heavily, while US tariff policy further unsettled trade flows. The pressure intensified in July as Washington doubled tariffs on aluminium imports to 50 per cent, a move that disrupted supply chains and reshaped price dynamics. North America: tariffs, stockpiling, and demand weakness In North America, the Aluminium Ingot Price Index fell nearly 18 per cent in the second quarter compared with the first, reflecting the combined impact of oversupply and weaker demand. Importers had accelerated stockpiling ahead of the Section 232 tariff hike in June, leaving...
Shaky but steady: Brazil’s aluminium can recycling rate falls 2.7% but stands above 95% for 15 years
Brazil’s well-established recycling system has once again propelled the country’s aluminium can recycling rate to an impressive 97.3 per cent. For more than 15 years, Brazil has consistently maintained a recycling rate above 95 per cent. This achievement is not only the result of a strong recycling infrastructure but also of a deep sense of commitment towards sustainability that encourages people consume aluminium cans. In 2024, aluminium can sales in Brazil rose 7.6 per cent, amounting to 34.8 billion units versus 32.3 billion units. Behind this all, steady economic progress is also a factor that drives aluminium can consumption. According to the World Bank, Brazil, with a population of 205.3 million, recorded a real GDP per capita of USD 10,616 in 2024, up from USD 10,377.59 in 2023. In...
US expands 50% tariffs on steel, aluminum to more derivative products
The Trump administration announced on August 15 that it will broaden the scope of its 50 per cent tariffs on steel and aluminum imports, extending the duties to hundreds of steel and aluminum derivative products with the metal content starting from August 18. According to a Federal Register notice, the US Commerce Department's Bureau of Industry and Security has added 407 product codes to the US Harmonized Tariff Schedule. These codes cover goods containing steel or aluminum, which will now be subject to the 50 per cent tariff rate based on their steel and aluminum content. Non-steel or non-aluminum components of these products will continue to be taxed at previously established tariff levels for imports from specific countries, the notice clarified. The US President Donald Trump in his...
Why is ENERGY MIX the decisive factor for aluminium’s cradle-to-gate footprint?
The aluminium industry has long sold itself as the ‘metal of the future’, well known for being lightweight, infinitely recyclable, and indispensable for decarbonisation in transport, construction and packaging. Yet, when scrutinised from a life-cycle perspective, the path from bauxite to ingot reveals an environmental footprint that is both energy-heavy and highly variable depending on geography. A landmark cradle-to-gate life cycle assessment (LCA) conducted by the International Aluminium Institute (IAI) brings forth one blunt truth, i.e., electricity supply is the single biggest determinant of aluminium’s environmental impact. Image source: https://www.researchgate.net/ The study, built on IAI’s global survey data and modelled using GaBi software, measured six core impact categories...
Australia’s solar success is creating scrap heaps — can recycling catch up?
Australia’s clean energy surge is powering homes and reshaping skylines with solar projects and modern construction — but behind the progress lies a growing waste challenge, as aluminium scrap and discarded solar panels continue to pile up. Each year, an estimated 4 million solar panels are removed from rooftops across the country, yet less than 5 per cent are recycled according to The Smart Energy Council (SEC). Without urgent intervention, experts warn solar waste could nearly double in the next five years — from 59,340 tonnes in 2025 to 91,165 tonnes by 2030. Solar panels are taken down due to malfunctions, performance drops, or early upgrades, while fragile roofs and safety regulations further contribute, often resulting in panels being removed well before their expected lifespan. One...
