Metal Bulletin assessed the aluminium ingot ADC12 cfr main Japanese ports (MJP) price at $1,760-1,770 per tonne on Wednesday July 26, down $25 per tonne compared with $1,730-1,750 per tonne in the previous week.
“This is as a result of higher raw material (silicon) prices and higher aluminium prices on the London Metal Exchange,” a producer in northern China said.
“Although it is the slack season, our production is as usual – domestic demand seems to get better,” a second producer said.
China’s silicon producers have raised quotations further on tight availability and rising raw materials costs. With higher domestic procurement costs, the Chinese silicon metal export price continued to move up last week.
For example, the Chinese 553-grade silicon export price rose to $1,540-1,580 per tonne on Friday July 21, up 2.6% from the previous assessment.
In addition, the LME aluminium price, which will affect the aluminium alloy price, has also performed strongly in recent days.
The three-month LME aluminium price stood at $1,935 per tonne at 11:34 London time, staying close to the two-month high.
China’s exports of unwrought aluminium alloys – of which most is ADC12 – totalled 106,487 tonnes in the first half of 2017, up 10% on a yearly basis.
