China April aluminium imports rise 36% from prior month

　　Imports of unwrought aluminium and products - which include primary metal and unwrought, alloyed aluminium - were 281,139 tonnes last month, up from March's 206,556 tonnes and jumped 165.2% year-on-year.

　　China, the world's top aluminium producer, brought in record amounts of the metal last year as strong demand helped Shanghai prices overtake London prices, opening an arbitrage window for cheaper overseas metal.

　　The arbitrage was mostly closed in April but had opened briefly in mid-March, paving the way for more imports, while the spread between Shanghai and London prices on May 13 hit its widest since July last year.

　　China's imports of bauxite, the main aluminium ore source, were down 12.3% year-on-year at 8.74 million tonnes in April, customs said. That was also down 13.6% from 10.11 million tonnes in March.