On March 4, the London Metal Exchange (LME) aluminium price reflected a 4-year high level, since the COVID in early 2022. On this day, the LME cash bid rose by USD 110.5 per tonne or 3.4 per cent, shifting from USD 3,267 per tonne to USD 3,377.5 per tonne. The cash offer marked a difference of USD 109 per tonne or 3.3 per cent, settling from USD 3,269 per tonne to USD 3,378 per tonne.

The rising aluminium price is owed to the ongoing tension between the US, Israel and Iran, due to which the Strait of Hormuz, the water route for shipping commodities, has been temporarily closed, resulting in worldwide supply disruption.

Don’t miss out- Buyers are looking for your products on our B2B platform

The regional tension also led to the closure of QatarEnergy’s major LNG plant, which resulted in an overall halt to Qatalum, a joint venture between Qatar’s state-owned aluminium producer and Norsk Hydro, which faced a temporary halt for an estimated timeframe of six to twelve months.

Owing to this, the LME aluminium three-month contract strengthened both the bid and offer, going up by 3.4 per cent, where the bid rose from USD 3,260 per tonne to USD 3,371 per tonne, reflecting a day-on-day increase of USD 111 per tonne. Similarly, the offer inched up from USD 3,260.5 per tonne to USD 3,372 per tonne, showing an increase of USD 111.5 per tonne.

Also read: QatarEnergy’s production suspension raises uncertainty over gas supply and aluminium operations at Qatalum

For longer-dated contracts, the current tension resulting to the supply disruption will also be affected, where both the December 2027 bid and offer on March 4 rose by USD 73 per tonne or 2.3 per cent. The bid shifted from USD 3,132 per tonne to USD 3,205 per tonne and the offer rose from USD 3,137 per tonne to USD 3,210 per tonne.

The LME aluminium three-month Asian Reference Price for March 4 was assessed at USD 3,342.5 per tonne from USD 3,251 per tonne, up by USD 91.5 per tonne or 3 per cent.

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

On the inventory side, LME aluminium opening stocks fell by 2,000 tonnes from 463,550 tonnes to 461,550 tonnes, representing a high of 0.4 per cent. Live warrants rose sharply to 377,100 tonnes from 375,525 tonnes, showing a difference of 1,575 tonnes or 0.4 per cent. In contrast, cancelled warrants declined significantly to 84,025 tonnes from 86,025 tonnes, reflecting a decline of 2,000 tonnes or 2.32 per cent.

Meanwhile, the LME alumina Platts price stood at USD 305 per tonne, showing no change from the day before.

The rising aluminium price has also resulted in the rising US Midwest Premiums, which in March 2026 recorded at USD 2,314.85 per tonne, which is increasing the demand but showing a constrained supply globally. 

To know more about the global primary aluminium industry 2026 outlook, book the report “Global ALuminium Industry Outlook 2026".