SMM Daily Review - 2011/12/9 Aluminum Market

SHANGHAI, Dec. 12 (SMM) – The most active SHFE three-month aluminum contract opened slightly lower at RMB 16,090/mt and closed at RMB 16,140/mt after China’s CPI growth came out in line with market expectations. Transactions rose to 11,026 lots while positions dropped 2,236 lots to 65,914 lots. Though temporary support can be found at the 10-day moving average, future direction of the metal is to be determined by the news side. The SHFE aluminum stock climbed 6,948 mt to 184,363 mt. The largest increase was seen at the Shanggang warehouse in Shanghai. Spot aluminum stocks declined, however, at warehouses in Guangdong, Jiangsu and Zhejiang.

Spot aluminum trading remained depressed during the day even though the November CPI came out meeting market expectations. Domestic spot aluminum stock is rising slowly and supply has turned normal in the Northwest China region. Traders moved goods at discounts in Shanghai and Wuxi etc. regions during the day as downstream purchases remained limited. Spot aluminum trading slightly improved in South China’s Nanhai, which local traders said were results of lower prices compared with other regions. Spot aluminum was traded between RMB 16,120-16,140/mt in Nanhai, Guangdong. At present most smelters are pessimistic towards future aluminum prices, saying that “the winter is coming”.