LONDON: Aluminium prices in London fell on Monday, under pressure from rising output in China and challenges to the country’s economy and consumption as Beijing braces for more U.S. trade tariffs under a second Donald Trump administration.
Three-month aluminium on the London Metal Exchange (LME) was down 0.7% at $2,585.50 by 1122 GMT.
Aluminium output in China, the world’s biggest producer of the metal, rose 3.6% from a year earlier in November, while the country’s industrial output grew ahead of expectations.
“Many will argue that the momentum seen in manufacturing, where industrial output rose 5.4%, was the result of front loading by manufacturers ahead of likely U.S. tariffs,” said Alastair Munro, senior base metals strategist at broker Marex.
Chinese aluminium output was also supported last month by demand from traders and producers who rushed to ship their cargoes before a change in export tax rebate policy.
Amid concerns that this policy change would tighten supply in Asia, some buyers in Japan agreed to pay a global producer a premium of $228 per ton of aluminium over the benchmark price for January-March shipments, up 30% from this quarter.
Some Japan buyers agree to 30% higher aluminium premiums for Q1, sources say
The broader markets were disappointed with slower retail sales growth in China in November, which added only 3.0%, underscoring the difficulties authorities are having there to boost domestic consumption.
The flows in base metals were dominated by risk reduction, with muted interest ahead of the Christmas and New Year holidays. “January volatility is incredibly unloved,” Munro said.
LME copper was down 0.1% to $9,040.50 per ton after earlier hitting $9,022, its lowest since Dec. 3. Some support for copper, used in power and construction, came from data showing that China’s new home prices fell at the slowest pace in 17 months.
Zinc lost 0.4% to $3,084, lead rose 0.2% to $2,014, tin gained 0.3% to $29,115, and nickel was down 0.6% at $15,760.
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