Spot aluminium discounts narrow in east China

SHANGHAI, Aug 1 (SMM) – Spot aluminium discounts in east China narrowed on Wednesday August 1 as traders remained keen to purchase, SMM learned.

Discounts stood at 70-50 yuan/mt against the SHFE August contract, narrower from 80-70 yuan/mt the previous day. The SHFE August contract edged down in the morning, and most transactions were heard at 14,350-14,360 yuan/mt in Shanghai, Wuxi and Hangzhou.

Sellers and buyers in the east appeared to diverge on prices and this made it harder for discounts to further shrink before the October contract turns into the most traded SHFE aluminium contract.

Meanwhile, sellers in the south remained keen to offload their cargoes while major traders continued to make purchases. This led to a brisk trading activity across the market.

Most transactions were heard at 14,520-14,530 yuan/mt in Guangdong, and the Guangdong-Shanghai price spread higher at 170 yuan/mt.

Processing fees for aluminium billet held steady in Guangdong while trading thinned on tepid downstream orders. Fees for 90 mm were at 480-520 yuan/mt with fees for 120 mm at 460-500 yuan/mt and fees for 150/178 mm at 380-420 yuan/mt.