MARKET TALK: LME Aluminum Stks Up; Chinese Exports

LME aluminum stocks rise sharply by a net 17,525 tons to 683,850 tons, with a 14,000 tons rise in Detroit, 3,775 tons in Busan and 3,425 tons in Singapore, which may be part of an overall 40,000 tons that could be delivered, says analyst Robin Bhar at UBS. "It seems the market was expecting this," he says. The deliveries into Busan and Singapore are likely to be Chinese exports while the delivery into Detroit was attracted by aluminum's nearby backwardation on easing demand towards the year-end. LME aluminum's cash-to-3-month backwardation is at $16.50/ton, up $1.50 on the day. LME 3-month aluminum last trades at $2,789, up $2 after an earlier intra-day high of $2,815.