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BEIJING: China’s aluminum imports in August fell 20.7% from the previous month, data from the General Administration of Customs showed on Saturday, reaching their lowest level since May.
Arrivals of crude aluminum and products – which include primary metal and crude alloyed aluminum – amounted to 247,547 tonnes, down from 312,086 tonnes in July and down 42.4% from the previous year. ‘last year.
In August last year, imports hit the second highest level on record as the COVID-19 pandemic disrupted trade flows and price arbitrage made it cheaper for domestic buyers to source metal abroad.
This year, restrictions on smelter production and electricity consumption in several regions have sharply reduced the domestic supply of aluminum in China, the world’s largest metal producer, keeping the demand for imported aluminum at a low. high level.
Russia, one of China’s largest foreign primary aluminum suppliers, however, imposed a 15% tax – or a minimum of $ 254 per tonne – on aluminum exports from August, making it less favorable shipments.
Chinese imports of bauxite, the main source of aluminum ore, fell 15.1% year-on-year to 8.7 million tonnes in August. It was also down 5.9% from July.
A coup in Guinea, China’s largest supplier of bauxite, toppled President Alpha Condé in early September, but the mines reported no immediate impact on operations.
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US data expected later today would provide more clues as to the pace of tightening stimulus measures in the world’s largest economy, which could affect liquidity in financial markets, the global economic recovery and the dollar – which can all have an impact on base metals.
Three-month aluminum on the London Metal Exchange (LME) hit its highest level since July 2008 at $ 3,000 per tonne.
