SMM Weekly Updates On China Aluminum Billet Social Inventory As of September 21

SHANGHAI, Sep 22 (SMM) –In mid-September, the increased supply of aluminum billet from August has led to a rise in arrivals, changing the low-level fluctuation of aluminum billet inventory to a sudden leap from under 70,000 mt to over 90,000 mt. With high aluminum prices, the market's pessimism about price drops and fear of high prices still dominated, leading to a persistent oversupply of aluminum billet. However, influenced by the traditional peak season and pre-holiday stockpiling, the consumption of aluminum billet slightly rebounded within the week. This allowed the inventory to fall back to below 90,000 mt. On September 21, 2023, SMM counted domestic aluminum billet stocks as 85,100 mt, a decrease of 6,000 mt WOW and a decrease of 400 mt from September 14, still at a low level in the same period of the past three years. Compared with the trend of social inventory of aluminum billet in previous years, the current level of social inventory of aluminum billet is close to the same period last year. The decrease in inventory mainly comes from the South China and Wuxi regions, with the South China region maintaining a de-stocking due to good outflow performance and fewer arrivals.