Overview of China’s Imports and Exports of Metals in September

China rare earth ore imports recorded 14,400 mt in January-February 2022, down 13% YoY which was mainly attributed to middle and heavy rare earth.

The British government said that the measures taken by the US to cancel import tariffs on British steel and aluminium will take effect on June 1.

According to sources, Indonesian President Jokowi admitted that the ban on raw ore export had not been without challenges, as the European Union (EU) has filed a lawsuit against Indonesia’s nickel ore export ban at the World Trade Organization (WTO).

The SHFE and LME nickel prices diverged markedly in the afternoon trading on Tuesday. The SHFE/LME nickel price ratio shrank from 7.28 to 7.07. The import loss widened to $1,000/mt.

According to General Administration of Customs China imported 8.73 million mt of bauxite in December, up 13.32% month-on-month and 16.4% year-on-year.

According to customs data, China's aluminium foil exports from January to December 2021 totalled 1.34 million mt, a year-on-year increase of 7.73%, hitting a record high. The previous high was 1.30 million mt in 2019.

This is a roundup of news in the steel industry for last week.

China imported 4.01 million mt of nickel ore and its concentrate in November, a decrease of 10% from the previous month and a year-on-year increase of 12%, According to General Administration of Customs.

The trades remained subdued, and the Yangshan copper premiums changed little. Many trading companies have closed their accounts and are busy with the year-end settlement, lacking purchasing interest for spot cargoes. Import losses fluctuated between 200-400 yuan/mt during the week against the January contract.

According to the National Bureau of Statistics, crude steel output in November was 69.31 million mt, a decrease of 3.2% month-on-month and 22% year-on-year. From January to November, the output of crude steel was 946.36 million mt, a year-on-year decrease of 2.6%.