China Exports of Aluminium Wheel Fell Sharply in October, Unlikely to Recover Significantly in November and December

SHANGHAI, Nov 25 (SMM) – According to customs data, China's aluminium wheel exports in October 2021 were 65,400 mt, a decrease of 25.79% month-on-month and 21.28% year-on-year.

Hebei and Guangdong saw the sharpest decline in exports. The exports from Hebei fell from 21,200 mt in September to 13,800 mt in October, down 35.19% on the month. Guangdong exported 2,500 mt of aluminium wheels in October, down 60.52% from September.

The exports from Shandong, Zhejiang, Tianjin, and Shanghai also fell significantly.

The top five export destinations in October were still US, Japan, Mexico, West Korea, and Thailand. Except for South Korea, the export volume to the other four countries all decreased from September. US saw a decline of 32.39%, Japan 20.69%, Mexico 13.83%, and Thailand 31.67%. The total export to the top five countries dropped by 16,200 mt on the month.

According to SMM analysis, most of the aluminium wheels exported in October were produced in August and September. The prices of silicon started to surge since late August, which caused alloy factories to frequently adjust processing fees. Alloy-wheel market was chaotic at that time, and the enterprises held a strong wait-and-see sentiment. The aluminium wheel plants were less willing to produce. In addition, the rising raw material prices pushed up the aluminium wheel prices, and the downstream customers reduced their purchases.

The market remained chaotic in September and October although the silicon prices were accepted. Many alloy plants significantly reduced or suspended the production of A356 alloy. The exports of aluminium wheels are hard to recover to above 80,000 mt in November and December.