On Thursday, Mysteel assessed spot prices for metallurgical-grade alumina with purity above 98.6 per cent in Shandong, Henan, Shanxi and Guizhou provinces and in the Guangxi autonomous region at RMB 3,205-3,325 per tonne (USD 446-463 per tonne), unchanged from Wednesday.
The steady spot prices reflected a stalemate between Chinese alumina sellers and buyers, market watchers said.
On the supply side, most alumina producers and traders held firm on their offers, citing relatively tight availability of the material in southern China. On the demand side, many primary aluminium smelters stayed on the sidelines, either awaiting lower prices or holding sufficient inventories.
As a result, China's spot alumina trading was muted yesterday, with Mysteel hearing of no concluded deals.
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Overseas buying, however, remained active. Mysteel heard of two deals totalling 60,000 tonnes of alumina, each involving 30,000 tonnes traded at USD 374 per tonne FOB Western Australia. Both cargoes are scheduled for September shipment, likely to China, according to market sources.
Meanwhile, alumina prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange continued to soften yesterday. The most-traded January 2026 contract fell 2.47 per cent to close Thursday's daytime session and ended the nighttime session 0.55 per cent lower, the exchange's data showed.
To get full insights into alumina market, read our report: Global Bauxite and Alumina Industry Outlook 2025
Note: This news is published under the content exchange agreement with Mysteel.
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