CRU
September 12, 2021
CRU: China Considers Killing Export Rebates on Aluminum
Written by Greg Wittbecker
By CRU Aluminum Advisor Greg Wittbecker
China has been wrestling with inflationary tendencies in its aluminum market for some time: Spot Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) high aluminum is at $3,516 per ton; that compares to $2,139 a year ago and $1,849 five years ago. The Chinese State Reserve Board (SRB) is releasing part of its long-held (2010) stocks of aluminum into the spot market to cool down local physical prices. Chinese imports of primary aluminum are soaring to their highest levels since the Global Financial Crisis of 2008-2009, having reached 744,000 tons during the first half of 2021 and showing no signs of abatement for the second half with widespread curtailments taking place due to power shortages in Guangxi and Yunnan.
