Today's futures dipped slightly, while spot stabilized and recovered [SMM Southern China Spot Aluminum Daily Review]

Published: Jul 16, 2026 14:43

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SMM, July 16:

The futures edged down slightly today. South China spot aluminum stabilized and improved. Tighter arrivals and accelerated inventory destocking supported most suppliers to hold prices firm and hold back from selling, or even refuse to sell, especially those above designated size. However, a small portion, influenced by bearish sentiment, lowered prices to sell first, causing some disruptions. Mainstream quotations were at a premium of 0 to +10 yuan/mt, and liquidity tightened significantly compared to before. Demand side, downstream maintained steady just-in-time procurement with solid actual demand. Traders, bullish on the outlook, increased purchases, showing active demand, and the intermediary sector's driving role emerged. The supply-demand pattern trended toward undersupply, and overall transactions gradually improved. Spot transaction prices were concentrated at a premium of -40 to 0 yuan/mt against the SHFE aluminum 2608 contract.

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