NBS: China's Jan-Oct alumina output rises 8% YoY despite Oct drop

In October alone, China produced 7.87 million tonnes of alumina, up by 5.8% from the same month of 2024, the NBS data indicated. However, production decreased by 1.7% during the same month compared with September, Mysteel Global calculated based on the NBS data.

Among China's five key alumina-producing regions, three recorded on-month declines in October, Mysteel Global noted. Alumina output in Guizhou, Guangxi, and Shanxi declined by 28.5%, 2.1%, and 1.2%, respectively, according to the NBS statistics. Even in Shandong, the country's largest production base, production remained broadly stable, edging up by a marginal 0.1%.

The on-month drop in nationwide output was mainly caused by small-scale production curtailments at some alumina refineries amid shrinking profitability in the domestic alumina sector, which fell to a five-month low last month. Mysteel's monthly survey showed that average profits among the 44 refiners under its monitoring slumped by 48.6% from September to just Yuan 149/tonne ($21/t) last month, the lowest monthly average since May this year.

The sharp erosion in margins was primarily driven by slipping alumina prices throughout the month. On October 31, Mysteel assessed the national spot price for metallurgical-grade alumina with purity exceeding 98.6% at Yuan 2,907/t, lower by 3.4% from September 30.

Meanwhile, the data for Gansu is the first for the province and seems to relate to the start of trial production on the first phase of a two-phase alumina project being actioned by Gansu Jiatang Aluminum located in Jiayuguan city in Gansu. Construction started in February 2023, as Mysteel Global reported, and the first 1.2 million tonnes/year phase reportedly began trials in July.

 Table: China's Oct alumina output by region

 Source: NBS

Written by Iris Pang, pangjunyu@mysteel.com