China’s 45Mt aluminium cap pushes producers overseas as global dominance grows
China’s aluminium industry is running close to its limits in 2026. As Shanghai aluminium prices near a three-month high, historically low raw material costs and strong smelter margins encourage producers to operate at maximum capacity. National aluminium output remains above Beijing’s...
WEEKLY: Guinea shipments surge but freight costs keep China bauxite spot split, prices pinned in tight band
China's domestic ore prices held steady last week. In Shanxi, a limited volume of relatively lower-grade domestic ore was concluded under long-term contracts at approximately RMB 530 per tonne. In Henan, the expected increase in domestic ore output has yet to materialise, leaving the supply-demand...
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WEEKLY: Chinese spot alumina prices stabilise on supply squeeze
Mysteel assessed the national average spot price for smelter-grade alumina with a minimum purity of 98.6 per cent at RMB 2,646 per tonne (USD 383 per tonne), unchanged throughout the January 30-February 5 week. To know more about the global primary aluminium industry 2026 outlook, book the report “...
China's solar capacity is set to surpass coal in 2026
China is approaching a symbolic and structural shift in its power sector as solar energy is on track to overtake coal in installed capacity for the first time in 2026. But since this milestone is unfolding alongside an aggressive coal build-out that critics say risks diluting the gains of China’s...
ASI certifies Jiangsu Dingsheng New Materials Joint-Stock Co., Ltd against Chain of Custody Standard V2
Jiangsu Dingsheng New Materials Joint-Stock Co., Ltd has achieved ASI Chain of Custody (CoC) Standard V2 (2022) Certification for the manufacture of aluminium alloy sheets, strips and foils at Jiangsu Dingsheng New Materials Joint-Stock Co., Ltd., Hangzhou Five Star Aluminium Co., Ltd. and Hangzhou...
Major SHFE non-ferrous metals futures decline on week
中文翻译附于新闻末尾，敬请继续阅读。 By the end of the daytime trading session on Friday, the most-traded nickel contract for May delivery had fallen by 6 per cent from a week earlier to end at RMB 132,330 per tonne (USD 19,069.8 per tonne). Meanwhile, the most-traded March aluminium and copper contracts had dropped...
2026 Arrangements for secondary aluminium alloy enterprises during Chinese New Year break
According to the latest SMM tracking, the Chinese New Year break schedules for secondary aluminium alloy producers have been successively released. The specific production schedules are as follows: Source: https://news.metal.com/ According to the SMM survey, most secondary aluminium alloy...
EU and US align to challenge China’s dominance over critical minerals
The world’s largest bilateral trade and investment partnership between the European Union (EU) and the United States (US) is about to include materials vital for most modern technologies. Among several geopolitical tensions, shrinking working age population (decline of 49 million by 2050) and...
Feature: China seen moving away from coal supply guarantees amid shifted energy mix
Supply guarantee policy reshapes coal market In May 2021, the Chinese government rolled out the coal supply guarantee policy to address an abrupt coal shortage that had quickly pushed up the fuel prices and caused power cuts in a few areas of the country. The subsequent droughts which dampened...
High aluminium prices suppress stockpiling demand for the Chinese New Year, extended holiday periods for alloys and downstream die-casting
Futures: The aluminium alloy 2603 contract closed at RMB 22,150 per tonne, up RMB 235 yuan or 1.07 per cent from the previous trading day. Volume was 2,539 lots, and open interest stood at 4,211 lots (down 150 lots from the previous session). After pulling back from the previous high of RMB 24,410...
New SECO/WARWICK CAB Line supports production for data centres and rail transport in China
The SECO/WARWICK Group will deliver a continuous Controlled Atmosphere Brazing (CAB) line to a Chinese manufacturer specialising in thermal solutions. This is the first project carried out for this Partner. The equipment will be used to braze a variety of components, ranging from cooling plates for...
China leads, but single refineries don’t! Here are the leading producers of Global High-Purity Alumina industry
With diverse industrial applications extending beyond aluminium production, the global alumina market is experiencing strong growth, valued at over USD 50 billion in 2024. It is expected to rise to over USD 85 billion by 2033. To know more about the global primary aluminium industry 2026 outlook,...
China's 5 per cent GDP in 2025: from de-property pain to green and high-end reconfiguration
In 2025, China delivered around 5 per cent GDP growth, broadly in line with the official target. Behind this headline, the familiar "property + infrastructure" growth model is giving way to a structure driven more by consumption, exports of high-tech and green equipment, and targeted investment in...
Guinea’s bauxite exports outpace production by 3.3%, routed to China - What drives China’s dominance and its market impact?
Guinea possesses a geological advantage few countries can rival . Beneath its terrain lies an estimated 7.4 billion tonnes of bauxite - nearly one-third of the world’s reserves. Yet despite this abundance, very little is refined domestically. Instead, the ore departs largely in raw form, feeding...
MONTHLY: China thermal coal faces muted price swings in holiday-heavy Feb
In January, spot prices at northern ports showed only mild volatility. The benchmark 5,500 kcal per kg NAR coal opened the month at RMB 690 per tonne (USD 99.5 per tonne), rose to RMB 706 per tonne in mid-January, then retreated to RMB 693 per tonne before closing at RMB 699 per tonne on January...
WEEKLY: Output cuts trim China alumina prices while stocks stay high
During January 23-29, alumina prices held largely stable but continued to be soft. Mysteel's price assessment showed that the national spot price for metallurgical-grade alumina edged down by 0.3 per cent on a weekly basis to average RMB 2,648 per tonne (USD 381 per tonne) as of January 29. The...
Under the backdrop of declining aluminium prices, purchasing sentiment remains at a relatively low level
SHFE aluminium 2602 fluctuated downward in the morning session, with the price centre lower than the previous trading day. The decline in aluminium prices led to a slight increase in purchasing sentiment. However, constrained by the approaching Chinese New Year break, overall downstream procurement...
MYSTEEL: China's primary aluminium supply-demand balance may tighten in 2026
In 2025, the total supply of primary aluminium in China, including both domestic production and imports, reached an estimated 46.64 million tonnes, up 3.1 per cent from the previous year, Mysteel estimated. To know more about the global primary aluminium industry 2026 outlook, book the report “...
Operating rate of aluminium downstream sectors declined sharply by 1.5 percentage points, operations under pressure amid combined effects of Chinese New Year and high aluminium prices
This week, the comprehensive operating rate for aluminium processing recorded 59.4 per cent, down 1.5 percentage points W-o-W, overall exhibiting the characteristics of "accelerated seasonal decline and deepening high-price suppression effects." Operating rates across most segments declined,...
The proportion of liquid aluminium in January declined, expected to face a significant drop in February
According to SMM statistics, China's aluminium production in January 2026 (31 days) increased by 2.7 per cent Y-o-Y and 0.5 per cent M-o-M. Overall downstream operating rates trended downward during the month, and the proportion of liquid aluminium also declined, dropping 4.4 percentage points...
