According to a Reuters update, some Japanese aluminium buyers have agreed to pay a 45 per cent higher shipment premium than previously agreed for the July-September quarter.
In early July, some Japanese aluminium buyers agreed to pay only $118-119 per tonne of premium for the third quarter’s shipments. That was 36 to 37 per cent less than the premium of $185 to $190 per tonne offered by some global producers for Q3.
However, in recent negotiations, Japanese buyers have raised their premium offers to $172 per tonne for the September quarter’s shipments, up 16 to 19 per cent from $145-148 per tonne paid in the April-June quarter but down from the initial offers of $175-190 per tonne made by global producers.
The increase in Q3 shipment premiums could be attributed to tight supplies in Asia as a large share of some primary metals was diverted to Europe and the United States, where premiums were higher and demand was stronger.
During the negotiation last week, one global producer lowered its offer to $172 per tonne after raising it once in mid-June to $185 per tonne from the initial proposal of $175 per tonne, as the talks dragged longer than usual. The global suppliers involved in the pricing talk were Rio Tinto and South32.
According to another latest report, based on Marubeni Corporation’s data, aluminium stocks at Japanese ports at the end of June 2024 totalled 317,860 tonnes, up about 3 per cent from 308,700 tonnes at the end of May.
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