Alumina prices are at a two year low and market participants at Fastmarkets' International Aluminium conference in Athens, Greece, are downbeat for the rest of the year, adding that the price floor had been lowered for alumina.
Market sources gathering at the annual event on September 23-25 have reported continued offers for significant volumes of alumina they "just don't need" and expect demand between now and the end of the year to remain weak. "The alumina market is a dog's dinner right now. Price are low, demand is poor and if you look ahead there is not much to pull it up. It is affecting everyone and it's a product of the whole poor aluminium [supply] chain," a trader said. "At the conference the majority of people are subdued because there is not a lot to be excited about. We are being offered alumina cargo nearly every day and we just don't need it," a consumer said. Fastmarkets' benchmark alumina index, fob Australia was calculated at $291.80 per tonne on Wednesday...