[SMM Weekly Aluminum Price Review: Macro Sentiment Improves, Coupled with Pre-Holiday Destocking, but Imbalance Between Bulls and Bears Still Exists]

In terms of aluminum billet inventory, according to SMM statistics, as of April 30, the aluminum billet inventory in major domestic consumption areas reached 151,000 mt, a decrease of 11,600 mt from Monday and 26,800 mt from Thursday last week, indicating smooth destocking. Benefiting from the improvement in downstream construction extrusion orders and production, the rigid demand for aluminum billets showed a marginal strengthening trend. Coupled with the significant pullback in aluminum prices compared to the previous period, the production enthusiasm in the end-use market improved, driving inventory destocking. Meanwhile, stockpiling ahead of the Labour Day holiday released consumption momentum. Aluminum billet enterprises maintained low in-plant inventory levels, and suppliers in the market also actively lowered prices to accelerate the pace of shipments ahead of the holiday. There were fewer arrivals and more shipments at social warehouses, thus exacerbating the rapid decline in inventory.

【Weekly Review of Aluminum Scrap and Secondary Aluminum: Weak Supply and Demand in Secondary Aluminum Market, Short-Term Weakness Persists】This week, the aluminum scrap market showed a pattern of steady differentiation. As of April 30, SMM A00 primary aluminum spot closed at 20,060 yuan/mt, cumulatively rising 80 yuan/mt from last Thursday. The overall price of aluminum scrap remained stable, but performance varied among different grades: low-grade aluminum scrap, such as baled UBC, was supported by marginally improving demand, cumulatively rising 50 yuan/mt to 15,050-15,650 yuan/mt (tax excluded).