Overview of China's primary aluminium production in December 2024 and forecast for January 2025

In December, multiple aluminum smelters in Sichuan and Guangxi reduced production. Specifically, in Sichuan, high alumina and electricity costs led to severe losses and production cuts, while in Guangxi, some smelters reduced production due to technological transformation, with plans to resume in Q4 2025. Resumption progress in Sichuan and Guizhou stalled during the month, mainly due to high alumina prices and weak demand and prices in the off-season, reducing the motivation for resumption. Projects in Xinjiang, Inner Mongolia, and Ningxia proceeded as planned.

During the month, the proportion of casting ingots increased in many regions, while the proportion of liquid aluminum decreased by 1.22 percentage points M-o-M and 1.99 percentage points Y-o-Y. Based on SMM's liquid aluminum proportion data, domestic aluminum casting ingot production in December increased by 8.23 per cent Y-o-Y to approximately 1.03 million mt.