China’s aluminium production in December’21 drops 3% on year but grows 3.6% M-o-M to 3.18 MT: SMM

In December (31 calendar days) 2021, China produced 3.18 million tonnes of aluminium, which was 3.17 per cent less than a year ago but 3.58 per cent more than 3.07 million tonnes in November 2021, found the Shanghai Metals Market data. The daily average output was 102,400 tonnes, up 100 tonnes per day month-on-month.

The improvement in aluminium production in December could be a result of the rise in operating capacity. Some aluminium smelters in Inner Mongolia, Yunnan, and Shanxi increased their output, resuming the production of a total capacity of around 240,000 tonnes.

In the entire year of 2021, China’s aluminium production was reported at 38.49 million tonnes, up 3.7 per cent year-on-year.

According to the Shanghai Metals Market, liquid aluminium accounted for 65.5 per cent of the total aluminium output in December 2021, an increase of 3.1 percentage points from the previous month.

As of early-January 2022, the domestic aluminium operating capacity was 37.7 million tonnes. The installed capacity was 43.77 million tonnes, with the average operating rate nationwide 86.1 per cent.

Going ahead, the supply side is likely to see a rising operating capacity in January. The output in Yunnan and Shanxi is expected to increase as well, while the production in other regions will be stable.

The total output in January is estimated to be around 3.2 million tonnes, slightly higher than in December 2021, with daily average production around 103,200 tonnes. The total domestic aluminium ingot output in the same month is likely to increase in January, with inventory to rise from mind-January. By the end of the month, primary aluminium inventory is likely to touch the 800,000 tonnes level.