China’s primary aluminium production fell by 3.2pc in November from a year ago, while refined copper output rose by 18.4pc in the same period. China produced 2.9mn mt of primary aluminium last month, down by 928,000mt from a year ago.
In China, plant outages caused by floods and an explosion at Hongqiao Group’s aluminium facility in August, decreased production. China’s largest aluminium producer Hongqiao’s production fell by 300,000mt this year. Hongqiao has an annual production capacity of 6.5mn mt.
Primary aluminium output in Eastern China will continue in the winter smog season as the Shandong Environment Authority exempt 19 Grade A companies from production in earlier December. These companies accounts for 90pc of Shandong’s total primary aluminium capacity which adds up to more than 6mn mt.
China produced 32.13mn mt of primary aluminium in the first 11 months of this year, down by 0.6pc from the previous year.
Copper production
China’s refined copper production rose by 18.4pc in November from a year ago. China produced 909,000mt refined copper in November, up by 141,000mt from the previous year. China has faced a shortage of copper scrap in the past six months as the country imposed restrictions on imports. Copper scrap imports into China dropped by 49pc in October from a year ago and the country’s copper ore imports went up by 21.8pc, to 1.9mn mt from 1.56mn mt last year.
China produced 8.88mn mt refined copper from Jan-Nov, up by 8.7pc or 710,000mt from the prior year period.