
The month of March is ending with bearish sentiment for LME aluminium as the light metal contract dipped sharply to US$1,996 per tonne overnight, a record low since August 2017. The contract closed at US$1997 per tonne yesterday March 29, down from US$2009 per tonne on Tuesday March 28. As the inventory of LME aluminium ingots grew by 24,675 tonnes and the global market is buzzing with trade tensions, the market is lacking strong fundamentals that can support the prices.

As on March 29, LME aluminium cash (bid) price stands at US$ 1996.50 per tonne, LME official settlement price stands at US$ 1997 per tonne; 3-months bid price stands at US$ 2013.50per tonne, 3-months offer price is US$ 2014 per tonne; Dec 19 bid price stands at US$ 2073 per tonne, and Dec 19 offer price is US$ 2078 per tonne.
The LME aluminium opening stock has increased to 1286300 tonnes. Live Warrants totalled at 1026275 tonnes, and Cancelled Warrants were 260025 tonne.
LME aluminium 3-months ABR price is hovering low at US$ 2029.69 per tonne.
SME and SHFE Aluminium Price Trend
The benchmark aluminium price on Shanghai Metal Exchange dropped from US$ 2185 per tonne on March 27 to US$ 2171per tonne on March 28, following the downtrend in LME.
Affected by weak LME aluminium, SHFE aluminium also edged down and closed at RMB 13,705 per tonne overnight. But SMM expects the gradual recovery of domestic consumption to support the prices. It is likely to trade rangebound at RMB 13,650-13,850 per tonne. Spot discounts are settling at a range of RMB 100-60 per tonne today.
Major exchanges are closed for Good Friday today. China’s manufacturing purchasing managers' index (PMI) in March will be the key factor to watch on Saturday March 31.
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