Even as concerns of a Chinese slowdown dominate markets, August data shows that Chinese primary aluminium imports rose a staggering 55% month-on-month in August at 11.7 Kt.
Aluminium imports rose by 55% to 11.7Kt and exports of aluminum declined to 1.9 Kt making China a net-importer of the mental for August.
Most of the aluminium exported from China goes to Japan, which is in the midst of an infrastructure reconstruction drive post the March Earthquake.
Aluminium prices at London Metal Exchange (LME) have dropped dramatically making the metal attractive for the price-sensitive Chinese. Prices have dropped from $2600/tonne in August to $2200/tonne as of September.
Power shortages at aluminium smelters have caused production losses in overall domestic output. As such, the Chinese have relied more on imports
Aluminium inventories at the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) are at their lowest since 2008. Inventories have declined by 331,453 tonnes since January 2011 to 110,016 tonnes as of last week, financial post reported. This is a decline of 75%.
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