The drivers for the increase in the operating rate in November included:
1. Seasonal production recovery: The disruption from the holidays subsided, and after the Double Festival holidays, domestic secondary aluminium enterprises gradually resumed a normal production pace.
2. Structural recovery in end-use demand: particularly, top-tier enterprises, mainly driven by automotive orders, accelerated capacity release, effectively boosting the overall industry operating level.
However, the release of industry capacity still faces multiple practical constraints, resulting in the increase in the operating rate falling short of market expectations. On one hand, raw material-side pressure remains high, the tight supply situation in the aluminium scrap market has not eased, and, coupled with raw material prices fluctuating at highs, enterprise procurement costs remain elevated. Some small and medium-sized secondary aluminium enterprises, constrained by raw material shortages, find it difficult to further expand capacity. On the other hand, policy uncertainties in regions such as Jiangxi and Henan suppress enterprise production enthusiasm, leading some local secondary aluminium enterprises to maintain cautious operations, such as remaining idle or implementing production cuts.
