Shanghai bonded aluminium stocks more than double in February; copper slips

Aluminium stock volumes in Shanghai bonded warehouses more than doubled in February 2021 on increased import activity due to a favorable arbitrage between London and Shanghai.

A marginal decline was recorded in Shanghai bonded copper stocks over the month to Friday February 26, while zinc and nickel inventories both stayed flat.
Aluminium stocks surge on open arbitrage
Fastmarkets assessed Shanghai bonded aluminium stocks at 20,000-22,000 tonnes in late February, up by 12,000-13,000 tonnes (147%) from 8,000-9,000 tonnes a month earlier.
Fastmarkets understands that the arbitrage window was open at the end of the month, which made it very attractive for holders of the light metal to import into China.

According to Fastmarkets' calculation of the aluminium import arbitrage, the monthly average loss for aluminium imports into China was $31.21 per tonne in February, compared with a loss...

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