SHANGHAI, May 16 (SMM) - A00 aluminium prices rose in April, while ADC12 secondary aluminium alloy prices went down. As of May 11, large producers cut their offers of ADC12 by 600 yuan/mt from a month ago to 18,500-18,700 yuan/mt, while small and medium-sized ones lowered their quotes by 500 yuan/mt to 18,100-18,300 yuan/mt.
According to data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers, China’s automobile production and sales were 2.13 million units and 2.16 million units respectively in April, down 17.5% MoM and 11.9% MoM, but up 76.8% YoY and 82.7% YoY. Affected by severe Covid outbreak, automobile production and sales almost stagnated in April last year, which explained the significant year-on-year growth in April this year. However, automobile production and sales fell compared with March as price cuts triggered strong wait-and-see sentiment among consumers and consumption recovery fell short of expectations. Demand from other end sectors was also bleak. Die-casting plants lowered their operating rates, hurting orders for secondary aluminium alloy. The market was flooded with cheaper secondary aluminium alloy. Traders cut their offers to less than 18,000 yuan/mt. ADC12 prices are still vulnerable to decline this month.
