Indian imports of aluminium scrap rose by 6.23pc or 10,72,948mt to 1,244,021mt in Jan-Nov 2019, from the prior year, due to a rise in India’s aluminium exports to China.
The China exports helped offset weak demand for aluminium in the domestic automobile industry.
In the January-November period, India imported 1,244,021mt of aluminium scrap, up by 6.23pc from the previous year.
Scrap imports in November 2019 dropped by 13,097mt to 102,465mt from the prior year, on weak domestic demand.
In the January-November period, India imported 288,448mt, the largest volume of aluminium scrap, from the US, followed by 139,378mt from the UK and 114,911mt from the UAE.
In November, India imported 25,930mt from the US; 11,825mt from the UK and 9,654mt from the UAE.
India’s automobile sector registered a drop in demand in 2019. The launch of BS-VI standards also impacted production.
India’s aluminium scrap imports in September 2019 were at 106,263mt, down by 6,577mt from the prior year.
India imported 108,893mt in October, down by 9,685mt from the prior year.
Market participants expect India’s scrap imports to rise in the coming months fuelled by renewed domestic demand as auto companies ramp up production of BS-VI vehicles.
Exports
A drop in China’s production of casting alloys, as the country curbed its scrap imports since July last year, created an opportunity for Indian manufacturers to supply casting alloys to China.
In the January-November period, India’s exports of unwrought aluminium alloys increased by 6,104.4pc or 6,142mt, from the prior year.
India exported 4,840mt aluminium to Japan in January-November period from 3,277mt in the prior year