Indonesia Determined to Ban its Bauxite Exports in June, but China’s Imports of Bauxite in March Still Stood High

SHANGHAI, May 16 (SMM) - China imported 12.05 million mt of bauxite in March, up 7.2% on the month and 2.9% on the year. Among them, 8.83 million mt were imported from Guinea, a year-on-year increase of 42.8%; imports from Australia and Indonesia were 2.09 million mt and 523,000 mt, respectively, a year-on-year decrease of 29.1% and 78.9%.

Most areas of Guinea feature tropical savanna climates, with the rainy season spanning from May to November and the dry season from December to April. According to historical data, the production and shipment of bauxite in Guinea usually reduce during the rainy season, so the imports from Guinea in the second half of this year will decline slightly compared with the first half. However, Guinea is still China's biggest bauxite supplier. It is estimated that the total annual import volume of bauxite from Guinea may reach about 90 million mt, a year-on-year increase of 29%. The total imports from Australia increased by 4.8% MoM in March amid stable domestic demand.

Imports from Indonesia stood at 523,000 mt in March, down 31.4% on the month and 78.9% on the year. Since April, only a small amount of Indonesian bauxite has flowed into China, and Indonesia’s determination to ban bauxite exports in June seemed unchanged. SMM survey showed that domestic alumina refineries that used Indonesian bauxite already sought other raw material sources to limit the influence of Indonesia’s bauxite export ban. However, the policy will still cast a negative impact on bauxite prices, which may further greatly reduce the alumina refineries’ profits.