Japan’s Q2 aluminium premium crashes to five-quarter-low as US tariff intervenes trade

After an initial aggressive uptick at the beginning of March, the premium for Japanese aluminium’s outbound trade during the second Quarter of 2025 (April to June) has reportedly crashed to USD 182 per tonne, which is clearly a 20 per cent decrease from the past quarter (Q1’25), reveals six sources involved in the pricing discussions. The downturn in premiums is the first quarterly drop in the recent five quarters, USD 46 down from January to March, with a premium of USD 228 per tonne. Aluminium has turned out to clasp a premium below initial offers from global production houses, which ranged from USD 245 per tonne to USD 260 per tonne, now raising the question of why such a premium fell.

On March 27, Platts evaluated the CIF main Asian ports (MAP) spot P1020 aluminium premium at USD 173 per tonne plus London Metal Exchange cash, intact day over day and down USD 32 per tonne from the start of 2025.

Japan is the most prominent Asian importer of premiums and light metals. For primary metal trade, it conforms to disbursement per quarter premium over the region-specific standard London Metal Exchange cash price. However, views in Japan and the rest of Asia were enfeebled as the US brought in 25 per cent tariffs on automotive imports effective April 2, which could additionally weaken demand for aluminium in the Asian market.