China’s unwrought aluminium alloy imports in September recorded highest so far

Shanghai Metals Market found China’s imports of unwrought aluminium alloy marked a record high in September totalling at 18,706 tonnes, as demand from Chinese secondary aluminium producers and die-casting plants increased with Beijing throttling down the inflows of aluminium scrap. The imports were up by 16.9 per cent from a month ago and 140 per cent from a year, the highest since SMM records began in January 2018.

By the end of the year, the unwrought aluminium alloy imports to China are expected to reach 40,000 tonnes, buoyed by shrinking aluminium scrap imports and low stocks at domestic secondary aluminium producers.

In September, China’s aluminium scrap imports were at 114,000 tonnes, down 19.1 per cent month-on-month but up 17.5 per cent over the year, showed customs data. In the entire third quarter, the imports of scrap to China amounted to 398,000 tonnes, indicating that Chinese scrap users almost run out of import quotas.

The monthly decline in aluminium scrap supply, on the other hand, led to the increase in aluminium scrap prices in November. Some scrap users even told SMM that they had to cut production in November due to scrap shortages.