Chinese alumina imports dropped to a record low of 8,145 tonnes in March, with zero inflows from Australia, China's largest alumina supplier, according to customs data.
In addition, total alumina shipments to China in the first three months came to just 184,905 tonnes, a drop of 79.93% year on year. The import window has been closed since early this year, with import losses continuing to widen in March as a result of soaring international alumina prices in contrast to a lingering weak domestic Chinese market. As a result, buying appetite for imported alumina has been largely muted so far in 2018. Taking freight, China's value-added tax (VAT) and the port handling fee into consideration, average import losses in March were over 400 yuan ($63) per tonne, according to Metal Bulletin's calculation. Metal Bulletin's daily fob Australia alumina index averaged $392.51 per tonne in...