ICYMI: Aluminium hits 10-year high amid supply tightness in global market
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Aluminium prices soared to their highest in more than 10 years on Thursday pressured by restriction concerns in China, the world’s largest producer, leading to a global supply tightness in the world market.
Benchmark aluminium on the London Metal Exchange (LME) jumped 0.1 percent to stand at $2,692.50 a tonne, having earlier touched $2,734.50, its highest since May 2011.
The most-traded October aluminium contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (ShFE) gained 1.4 percent to 21,460 yuan a tonne.
Robin Bhar, an independent commodities analyst, asserted that lower Chinese output is currently disrupting a market that had been abundantly supplied with the metal for years.
Bhar predicted that prices would rise above $3,000, adding that inventories have lowered significantly to fill the gap between supply and demand.
Further fuelling aluminium prices are reports indicating coal shortages in India. A situation analysts said is likely to curtail energy supply to aluminium smelters, cutting production in the world’s second largest producer, and creating a disruption to domestic aluminium output.
Other base metals settled on a bullish platform except for tin which lost 0.2 percent at $33,470 per tonne. Copper climbed 0.5 percent to $9,378 per tonne, zinc was up 0.1 percent to $2,983 per tonne, nickel stood 0.4 percent higher at $19,400 per tonne, and lead rose 1.4 percent to $2,305.50 per tonne.