SMM, July 14:
The trading center of the SHFE aluminum 2606 contract in early trading was higher than the same period of the previous trading day. Affected by higher aluminum prices, market buying sentiment was weak today, with just-in-time procurement dominating. Transactions were mainly at discounts of 10-20 yuan/mt against the SHFE August contract. Today, the selling sentiment index in east China stood at 3.08, flat DoD; the buying sentiment index stood at 3.16, flat DoD.
The July off-season, combined with high temperatures, kept operating rates at downstream processing enterprises in central China low, and buying sentiment remained weak. However, with relatively large premiums/discounts, traders' hedging sentiment encouraged them to widen discounts to capture price spreads, resulting in higher buying interest. At the same time, suppliers showed a notable willingness to hold prices firm when selling, pushing discounts higher. Ultimately, actual transactions in central China were concluded at discounts of 130-170 yuan/mt against the SHFE August contract. Today, the selling sentiment index in central China was 2.81, down 0.02 DoD; the buying sentiment index was 2.23, up 0.01 DoD.
On the inventory front, aluminum ingot inventory in major consumption areas fell by 0.1 DoD today, with destocking mainly in Wuxi and Guangdong.
