For The Quarter Ending September 2022
North America
During the third quarter of 2022, Aluminium Sheet prices witnessed a rising trend amidst the effect of inflation and economic uncertainty on customer spending. As per market players, the Labor Day holiday in the US came in the middle of the latest assessment period, on September 5, resulting in no reported activity in an already subdued spot market. Buyers remained stunned about how far this slide had gone. As per the buyer, upstream Aluminium prices are close to bottoming out. However, secondary Aluminium alloy manufacturers who buy primary Aluminium cite that price of Aluminium products had fallen due to a widespread decline in the US Aluminium market. The overall Aluminium market is listing lower. For now, there was a status quo amidst a subdued spot market. As a result, the Aluminium Sheet (1100-H14-0.8 mm) prices for Ex New York (USA) settled at USD 17140/MT.
Asia Pacific
During the third quarter of 2022, the Asia Pacific region witnessed increased demand for Aluminium sheets. The tradeable volume in the Japanese market is low, and there is no incentive to deliver to Japan. Japanese traders and end-users are wary of purchasing metal on the international market. According to market participants, Japan has much stock, and there have been attempts to destock to avoid backwardation and its effects on balance sheets. Despite smelter curtailments announced in Europe, market participants remained bearish due to high inventory levels in Asia, particularly Japan, and were more concerned about forwarding demand. In India, Vedanta linked the prices of its Aluminium ingots and Aluminium products to the London Metal Exchange. China has limited its Aluminium smelting capacity to 45 million tonnes per year and intends to shift primary capabilities to hydropower-rich regions in the country's southeast. Thus, the discussion of Aluminum Sheet (1 mm) prices for Ex Shanghai (China) settled at USD 2685/MT.
Europe
In the European market, Aluminium Sheet prices witnessed a declining trend due to the weak spot demand and good availability of imported units. Several European smelters have recently announced energy-related production cuts, but premiums have continued to fall, with weak demand outweighing potential supply concerns. Duty unpaid premiums also fell, with lower offers reported in the market to entice more buyers. Some participants are concerned about supply, while others believe the smelter cuts will have little impact, with further premium cuts likely in the coming months due to low consumer demand, ongoing recession fears, and increased availability of imported units. While some players still saw ongoing logistics issues as a barrier to imports, others were less concerned, noting that European premiums remained close to recent record highs, making Europe an appealing destination for material imports. As per buyers, market players have been concerned over supply curtailments. Asian units will replace any capacity lost from Europe. The premiums in the Asian market remain low compared to Europe, and freight rates have dropped, so anyone who accesses units there will bring them over. As a ripple effect, the Aluminium Sheet (1100-H14-0.8 mm) prices for Ex New York settled at USD 17140/MT.
