1. Macro perspective The US-Iran conflict entered its second week. After the escort coalition intervened, traffic through the Strait of Hormuz partially recovered, but war risk insurance rates remained elevated. Brent crude pulled back from a high of USD 101 to consolidate around USD 95, with energy cost support weakening from earlier levels but not yet fading. The US Fed delivered a 25bp rate hike at its September FOMC meeting, and the dot plot indicated one more hike may still occur this year. Chair Warsh struck a hawkish tone in his post-meeting remarks, and the US dollar index held at a 13-month high. Next week, attention turns to China's official PMI on September 30, as well as US PCE and non-farm payrolls data during the National Day holiday—with China's market closed for seven days...
According to data released by the General Administration of Customs of the People's Republic of China (GACC), China's total primary aluminium imports reached 185,500 tonnes in August 2026, down 14.65 per cent year-on-year but up 0.16 per cent month-on-month. Total imports for January-August amounted to 1.66 million tonnes, a decrease of 3.41 per cent year-on-year. The 14.65 per cent year-on-year decline in August imports, coupled with a nearly flat month-on-month performance, indicates that imports have not collapsed but rather maintained a steady inflow. In August, China's total primary aluminium exports stood at 21,900 tonnes, down 14.53 per cent year-on-year and 30.48 per cent month-on-month. Cumulative exports for January-August totalled 167,500 tonnes, up 9.26 per cent year-on-year....
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According to an update by Shanghai Metals Market, trades of spot aluminium remained brisk yesterday, December 4, across east and south China after futures aluminium prices recorded a one-day gain at the start of the week. The SHFE 1812 contract traded range-bound in the morning. In Shanghai, spot discounts were heard at RMB 50 per tonne to RMB 40 per tonne, compared to RMB 60 per tonne to RMB 50 per tonne in the previous day. In Shanghai and Wuxi, on the other hand, most transactions were heard at RMB 13,650 per tonne to RMB 13,660 per tonne while that in Hangzhou at RMB 13,680 per tonne to RMB 13,700 per tonne. Traded prices across eastern markets stood some RMB 20 per tonne lower than yesterday. Downstream consumers purchased on demand while trades between traders were active. In...
The US dollar fell broadly overnight as US Treasury yields slipped. Both LME and SHFE base metals ended in mixed territory overnight. LME aluminium lost 0.2% while SHFE aluminium edged down 0.1%. LME aluminium closed Tuesday’s trading at US$1985 per tonne and continued to trade higher at night. However, a rebound in the US dollar index forced LME aluminium to reverse its gains made in European trades, to a low of US$1,963 per tonne. LME aluminium ended at US$1,970 per tonne overnight, below the 40-day moving average. We expect it to trade at US$1,960-1,980 per tonne today. As on December 4, Tuesday, LME aluminium cash (bid) price stood at US$ 1984.50 per tonne, LME official settlement price stands at US$ 1985 per tonne; 3-months bid price stands at US$ 1979.50 per tonne, 3-months offer...
AlCircle has launched Webinar service for companies and associations from the aluminium value chain. The new offering provides a platform to present and promote their expertise and business via webinars so that they can engage your relevant audience, connect to a new network, and reach out and influence key decision makers from their business sector. Through the webinars, organizations not only can avail the benefits of AlCircle promotion, but also gain and evaluate the prospects of those who have registered for their webinar. An organization or consultant can host a webinar on any topics related to the global aluminium value chain and its allied sectors. AlCircle is excited to announce its upcoming webinar – “ Path to A Virtual Aluminium Ecosystem” . The presentation intends to put...
A Japanese aluminium buyer has agreed to pay a global producer a premium of $85 per tonne over the benchmark price for shipments in January to March, the lowest in more than two years, two sources involved in pricing talks said on Tuesday. That is down 17 percent from a premium of $103 per tonne in the current quarter and marks the second consecutive quarterly drop. It is also lower than the initial offers of $91-$93 made by producers. Japan is Asia’s biggest importer of aluminium and the premiums PREM-ALUM-JP for primary metal shipments it agrees to pay each quarter over the benchmark London Metal Exchange cash price set the benchmark for the region. The latest quarterly price negotiations began last month between Japanese buyers and global producers, including Rio Tinto, South32 Ltd and...
India’s primary aluminium exports have recorded a 21 per cent increase in H1 (April-September period) of FY 2018-19. Industry data shows that in HI of FY 2018-19, exports of aluminium ingots reached 772,000 tonnes in volumes, up from 638,000 tonnes in the corresponding period of the last financial year. Primary producers maintain that exports have been driven by a consistent increase in imports of primary and fake semis. They hold that it has not been driven by the US-China trade war. Aluminium Secondary Producers Association ASMA claimed that the tariffs benefitted Indian primary producers exporting a huge quantity of aluminium billets and ingots. But, primary producers say that after the trade conflict, the country's aluminium exports have slowed to nine per cent. "The trade war and...
Emirates Global Aluminium announced it has received recognition as a UAE Pioneer by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. Abdulla Kalban, Managing Director and Chief Executive Officer of EGA, said: “It is a great honour for EGA to be recognised as a UAE Pioneer by His Highness Sheikh Mohammed bin Rashid Al Maktoum, Vice President and Prime Minister of the UAE and Ruler of Dubai. I would like to thank everyone who has worked at EGA over the past four decades, helping build this company into a leader in the aluminium industry worldwide.” Source:www.ega.ae The development of EGA has taken the UAE from no aluminium production to the fifth largest aluminium producing nation in the world. EGA is the only producer of...
The US dollar fell broadly at the start of the week, as currencies battered by trade tensions between the US and China staged a comeback after leaders from the two countries declared a temporary truce on tariffs. LME base metals ended in the black across the board. Aluminium rose 1.2%. SHFE base metals, however, ended in mixed territory. After closing Monday’s trading at US$ 1982.50 per tonne, LME aluminium started strengthening further at night. Finally the contract slipped to close at US$1,974 per tonne overnight, below the 40-day moving average, after it climbed to a high of US$1,996 per tonne in European trades. We expect it to trade at US$1,950-1,980 per tonne today. As on December 3, Monday, LME aluminium cash (bid) price stood at US$ 1982 per tonne, LME official settlement price...
China's social inventories of primary aluminium across eight consumption areas including SHFE warrants amounted to 1.367 million tonnes as of Monday December 3. This is down from 1.386 million tonnes recorded on Thursday November 29, SMM data showed. Social warehouses saw fewer shipments arrive over the weekend as producers cut their production. This mainly accounted for the decline in inventories of primary aluminium. The current inventory status in the major Chinese cities is as follows: In another update from SMM, the A00 aluminium ingot price registered a drop from RMB 13680 per tonne to RMB 13660 per tonnes on Tuesday, December 4.The average prices are expected to range between RMB 13,640 per tonne to RMB 13,680 per tonne, with spot discounts to settle at RMB 80 per tonne to RMB 40...
The leaders of the world's two largest economies, President Donald Trump and Chinese President Xi Jinping, met face-to-face on December 1 Saturday in Argentina, which was expected to temporarily halt an escalating tit-for-tat trade war. They agreed to a temporary trade cease-fire to allow time for more negotiations. This indicated that U.S. tariffs on US$200 billion worth of Chinese goods will not rise to 25 per cent from current 10 per cent on Jan1. White House press secretary Sarah Huckabee Sanders said in a statement that adhering to the deal, China would buy "a very substantial amount of agricultural, energy, industrial, and other product from the United States to reduce the trade imbalance between our two countries." London and Shanghai industrial metals also jumped on Monday after...
Qatar Petroleum's Qatar Aluminium Manufacturing Company or Qamco shares will start trading on QSE from December 10. According to the discussions that took place in Qamco’s first general assembly meeting on December 2, the shares of Qamco are expected to begin trading on the Qatar Stock Exchange (QSE) from December 10, 2018. In October, Qamco, the Qatari public joint stock company announced its plans to sell 49 per cent of its shares in a public offering. The AGM was held after the successful completion of the initial public offering (IPO) process recently, which was oversubscribed. The board also received an approval for the Memorandum of Association and Articles of Association to constitute the Company. The meeting, presided over by Abdulrahman Ahmad Al Shaibi, Chairman of Qamco, also...
According to Shanghai Metal Market, Weiqiao Group lowered its prebaked anode purchasing prices by RMB 50 per tonne after it kept the prices flat on the month in November. For December, the prices are hovering at RMB3,590 per tonne in cash and RMB 3,625 per tonne on acceptance. On the other hand, prebaked anode prices in Central, South-west and North-west remained unchanged at RMB 3660 per tonne, RMB 4000 per tonne, and RMB 4100 per tonne respectively. A00 aluminium ingot prices registered a jump today, December 3, 2018. Ingot price gained RMB 180 per tonne to stand at RMB 13,680 per tonne. The average prices today are expected to range between RMB 13,660 per tonne and RMB 13,700 per tonne, with spot discounts to settle at RMB 90 per tonne to RMB 50 per tonne. A00 aluminium ingot prices...
The dollar strengthened on Friday night, as markets awaited the outcome of talks between the leaders of the world's two biggest economies at the G-20 summit. Chinese President Xi Jinping and US President Donald Trump agreed to a temporarily pause an escalating trade war. A White House statement about the leaders' dinner said that Xi and Trump agreed to hold off on additional tariffs on each other's after January 1, as talks continued between both countries. LME base metals ended in mixed territory and aluminium rose 0.85%. SHFE base metals, however, traded higher across the board on Friday night. After closing Friday’s trading at US$ 1935 per tonne, LME aluminium started strengthening at night on anticipation of positive outcome from G-20 summit. The contract ended at US$1950 per tonne on...
The Aluminum Association joined global aluminium association leaders from Brazil, Canada, the EU, Japan and Mexico and signed a letter to leaders of the G20 calling for renewed commitment “to tackling the issue of market-distorting aluminium overcapacity.” The association leaders, in the letter urged to tackle the overcapacity issue which is distorting the international market and putting aluminium producers across the entire value chain at risk. They insisted that this has been happening due to state subsidy. They insisted that free trade can be an engine of prosperity, social mobility and peace only when businesses are able to operate on a level playing field. The leaders expressed their concern about the persistent growth in overcapacity in both the upstream and mid- and downstream...
Canada, the U.S. and Mexico signed the new North American trade agreement on Friday, November 30, on the sidelines of the Group OF G20 summit in Buenos Aires. The new agreement, officially known as the U.S.-Mexico-Canada Agreement (USMCA), still needs to be ratified by legislators in all three countries before it can formally take effect. The three agreed on a deal in principle to replace the North American Free Trade Agreement (NAFTA), which governs more than $1.2 trillion of mutual trade, after acrimonious negotiations concluded on September 30. “This new agreement will ensure a future of prosperity and innovation for Mexico, Canada, and the United States,” Donald Trump said. Canada’s Prime Minister Justin Trudeau said the new deal “lifts the risk of serious economic uncertainty that...
The US dollar traded robustly last week. After a slight fall in the mid-week dollar recovered but remained under 97 as concerns before the G20 meeting prompted investors to buy back the currency. LME aluminium continued to trade weakly over the weak but recovered some losses towards the end of the week. The contract saw a trading range of US$1912.50-1,935 per tonne, lower than the last week. The LME aluminium contract started the week at US$1920 per tonne and continued its downward trend with the US dollar holding steady against a currency basket and in absence of strong market fundamentals. The contract plunged to US$1912.50 per tonne mid-week and regained slowly at the end of the week when the dollar consolidated and in anticipation of a resolving of the U.S. China trade war during G20...
According to the latest update from Shanghai Metals Market, China exported some 11,154 tonnes of anhydrous aluminium fluoride, a raw material in aluminium smelting, in October 2018, an increase of 237 per cent from October 2017. On month on month, the export volume dropped 19 per cent from September 2018. Russia remained the top importer of anhydrous aluminium fluoride from China. China’s exports to Russia increased 102 per cent MoM to 3,384 tonnes, showed data from China Customs on Thursday November 29. Exports to Australia stood at 1,224 tonnes in October, an increase of 4 per cent from September 2018. This made Australia the second largest export destination for anhydrous aluminium fluoride, the data showed.
Headquartered in Beijing, Aluminium Corp of China Ltd., also known as Chalco, is reportedly reducing output on some of its aluminium production lines in northern China because of Chinese aluminium price plunge to a two-year low, announced the company itself on Friday, November 30. Shanghai aluminium prices today, on November 30, ended down 0.8 per cent at RMB 13,555 per tonne, the lowest close since September 30, 2016. Chalco said to the Shanghai Stock Exchange that it would shut around 470,000 tonnes of annual aluminium production at units in Shanxi Huasheng and Shandong Huayu, subject to flexible output arrangements. According to the company’s annual report, this 470,000 tonnes figure accounts for nearly 12 per cent of Chalco’s 3.93 million tonnes of primary aluminium capacity at the...
The leading aluminium event in the Middle East, the annual ARABAL conference, hosted by Kuwait Industries, took place in Kuwait from 11 to 13 November. The event was officially inaugurated by H.E. Khaled AlRoudan, Minister of Commerce and Industry. ARABAL 2018 conference highlighted the success of the Middle East Aluminium industry in last three decades and sought to find innovations for a sustainable aluminium industry in future. Commenting on the event and the industry, ARABAL Chairman Mr Mohammed Al Naki said, “The GCC has been looking for ways to diversify its industry and income and aluminium is now a key sector for the region. When we started ARABAL 35 years ago there were only three smelters and production was extremely low. Now we have 6 smelters and aluminium production has...
