SMM, April 20:
According to data from the General Administration of Customs, domestic primary aluminum imports in March 2026 were approximately 255,000 mt, up 26.5% MoM and up 14.8% YoY. From January to March 2026, domestic cumulative primary aluminum imports totaled approximately 646,000 mt, up 10.6% YoY. Domestic primary aluminum exports in March were approximately 15,000 mt, up 45.9% MoM and up 65.4% YoY. Cumulative primary aluminum exports from January to March totaled approximately 38,000 mt, up around 82.3% YoY. Domestic net primary aluminum imports in March were 240,000 mt, up 25.4% MoM and up 12.7% YoY. Cumulative net primary aluminum imports from January to March were approximately 608,000 mt, up 7.9% YoY. (The above import and export data are based on HS codes 76011090 and 76011010.)
Primary aluminum imports by country: In March, 82.3% of total imports came from the Russian Federation, 5.8% from India, 4.7% from Indonesia, and 4.5% from Australia.
Primary aluminum imports by trade mode: From January to March, the share of primary aluminum imports under Ordinary Trade was 4.0%, 1.3%, and 1.7% respectively, down 23.6, 27.2, and 21.3 percentage points YoY respectively. LME aluminum outperformed SHFE aluminum in price trends, and the SHFE/LME price ratio declined. Imports under Ordinary Trade decreased, and it cannot be ruled out that a large volume of bonded zone cargoes will be re-exported to other countries outside China going forward.
According to SMM, long-term contract imports and some previously signed import orders in March were executed as scheduled. Combined with the arrival of in-transit cargoes, primary aluminum imports stayed high. However, from the current fundamentals perspective, there was a significant primary aluminum deficit outside China, the inflection point for domestic aluminum inventory had not yet arrived, and the loss on primary aluminum imports expanded to a maximum of 852.47 yuan/mt in April. Some imported primary aluminum cargoes are expected to be redirected or re-exported to Japan, South Korea, Thailand, India, and even Europe, the US, and other countries and regions.
Overall, domestic net primary aluminum imports in 2026 are expected to decline YoY.
