Indian imports of aluminium scrap rose by 8.15pc or 86,046mt in the Jan-Oct period from the prior year supported by healthy demand from the local secondary alloy manufacturers exporting alloys to China.
In the Jan-Oct period, India imported 1,141,557mt of aluminium scrap, up by 8.15pc from the previous year. Scrap import in October dropped by 9,685mt to 108,893mt from the prior year, on weak domestic demand.
India imported 262,518mt, the largest volume of aluminium scrap from the US, followed by 127,553mt from UK and 105,257mt from the UAE in the Jan-Oct period. In Oct, India imported 30,357mt from the US; 12,458 from the UK and 9,132mt from Saudi Arabia.
The rise in India’s imports of aluminium scrap can be attributed to the rise in India’s aluminium exports to China which helped offset weak demand for aluminium in the domestic automobile industry. The weakness in domestic demand is reflecting in the aluminium scrap imports in August, September and October. India imported 120,764mt in August, down by 3,040mt from the prior year. India imported 106,263mt in September, down by 6,577mt.
Market participants expect India’s scrap imports to rise in the coming months fueled by export demand and return of domestic demand from the auto sector.
Exports
China’s production of casting alloys dropped following its curbs on scrap imports imposed in July. This created an opportunity for Indian manufacturers to supply casting alloys to China. In the Jan-Oct period, India’s export of casting alloys grew by 793pc or 40,836mt, from the prior year. India had exported 5,149mt of aluminium alloys in the prior year period.
India exported 3,005mt aluminium to South Korea and 1,740mt to China in October.