Secondary Aluminum Industry Leaders' Operating Rate Drops to 53.4% Amid Cost and Demand Pressures
[SMM Aluminum Flash] The operating rate of secondary aluminum industry leaders fell by 0.5 percentage point WoW to 53.4% this week, pressured mainly by both cost and demand factors. Cost side, tightening invoice supervision across multiple regions stuck, leading to difficulties in compliant procurement and high tax burdens. Enterprise profits came under pressure and even turned negative, prompting some producers to cut or suspend production. Demand side, the downstream continued its weak off-season pattern, with demand from end-users such as OEMs pulling back. Market transactions were dominated by rigid restocking. If the invoice supply issue continues to worsen, along with a further deepening of the off-season, the industry operating rate will still face downward pressure, and the supply-