China's EV and RE sector boom rescues aluminium demand amid property market crisis

Chinese aluminium prices have shown more resilience than global prices for most of this year. While London Metal Exchange (LME) aluminium prices have experienced an over 8 per cent decline this year, prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) have risen by around 1 per cent year-to-date. The continuous demand for aluminium in China has remained steadfast throughout the year, driven by the growing demand from the green sector, despite the nation's lacklustre economic recovery.

China experienced a surge in the inflow of aluminium due to an arbitrage opportunity arising from Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) prices surpassing those of the London Metal Exchange (LME). In September, China's imports of unprocessed aluminium and related products saw a significant year-on-year increase of 63.2 per cent, reaching 331,716 tonnes. When considering the cumulative figures for the first nine months, imports grew by 21.5 per cent year-on-year, totalling 2.04 million tonnes.