Global primary aluminum production stood at 5.74mn mt last month, up by 5.7pc from 5.43mn mt in May 2020, according to the International Aluminum Institute (IAI).
Last month, production in China rose by 9pc to 3.3mn mt compared with 2mn mt in the same month last year. During this period, output in the rest of Asia also increased by 10.8pc to 379,000mt from 342,000mt.
In North America, primary aluminum production fell by 5pc to 329,000mt in May, compared with 346,000mt in the prior-year period. Meanwhile, South America’s output increased by 35pc to 99,000mt from 75,000mt a year ago.
Output in East and Central Europe trended flat at 351,000mt from May 2020. In West Europe, production inclined by 2.8pc to 292,000mt against 284,000mt a year ago. In the Middle East, output fell by 0.5pc on an annual basis to 494,000mt from 495,000mt.
Production decreased by 2.2pc in Africa to 136,000mt from 139,000mt in May 2020 while Oceania produced 150,000mt of primary aluminum, down 7.5pc from a year ago. Estimated unreported production in the rest of the world remained unchanged at 170,000mt in May 2021.