SHANGHAI, Nov. 4 (SMM) –Buoyed by Alcoa’s announcement of aluminum and alumina output cuts, SHFE 1601 aluminum shot up to RMB 10,440/mt after opening at RMB 10,355/mt on Tuesday. But prices fell back to RMB 10,400/mt later as investors opened short positions at highs, and dropped further to RMB 10,350/mt in the afternoon as more shorts entered. Finally, the most active contract ended up RMB 60/mt or 0.58% at RMB 10,375/mt. Trading volumes were up 15,812 lots to 171,000 lots, and positions were up 8,218 to 281,000. The game between longs and shorts became more intense in the RMB 10,350-10,400/mt range.

In east China spot aluminum market, prices followed SHFE aluminum up on Tuesday. Cargo holders were active in selling, widening spot discounts. Prices were mainly between RMB 10,300-10,320/mt in Shanghai and Wuxi, discount of RMB 100-80/mt over SHFE 1511 aluminum, versus RMB 10,310-10,320/mt in Hangzhou. In the afternoon, only a few deals were done, with prices reported at RMB 10,330/mt.