The off-season arrived prematurely at May's end,  keeping aluminium plate/sheet and strip operating rates at lows

SHANGHAI, Jun 20 (SMM) – SMM's research shows China's aluminium plate/sheet and strip industry operating rates averaged 65.04% in May, down 0.97 percentage points MoM and 12.25 percentage points  YoY.

In May, the aluminium plate/sheet and strip market experienced subdued demand, dampening operating rates. A notable decline in new orders was reported compared to April. Given the customised nature of these orders, producing products that match to customer requirements in advance is challenging, thus companies typically avoid high finished product inventory. Several companies have adjusted their operating rates downwards to align with the reduced orders.

For the end-use market, aluminium plates/sheets predominantly serve construction, industrial, packaging, and transport sectors. Among all sectors, new energy vehicle-related products like water-cooling plates, battery shells, and battery foil stock stand out with robust demand, exhibiting one of the few areas with positive YoY sales growth.

However, aluminium plate/sheet and strip demand in food packaging, industrial, and construction sectors is below last year's level. Even though new energy vehicle products are gaining market share, many aluminium plate/sheet and strip businesses haven't yet benefited from this sector's demand, leading to low operating rates.

June to August marks the traditional off-season for aluminium plate/sheet and strip. This year, companies have already reported order slowdowns since late May, indicating an early onset of the weak market, by half a month. This could mean that demand has hit rock bottom, potentially leading to a less pronounced June operating rate decline compared to previous years.

On the other hand, nearly all companies find maintaining current order levels exceedingly challenging with this year's global economic slowdown, seeing virtually no prospect of a substantial demand rebound during the off-season. Consequently, a low operating rate for aluminium plate/sheet and strip is anticipated over the next three months.