Japan Secondary Al Production Decreases by 46.3% in April

Japanese secondary aluminium and aluminium alloy ingot production decreased by 46.3% to 50,448 tonnes in April from a year earlier, announced by Japan Aluminium Refiners Association on May 29. The shipment decreased by 46.4% to 50,384 tonnes. The production decreased for 11 straight months and the shipment decreased for 9 months in a row. The shipment for die-casting and casting dropped significantly due to the automobile demand stagnancy.

The demand is gradually recovering after bottoming out in February. Major secondary aluminium makers seem to increase the output after March due to the progress of inventory adjustment and the slight demand recovery.

However, the averaged operation rate of secondary aluminium makers seems to be 50-60%. The profitability is apparently impacted by low level selling price and higher fixed cost burden under major production cut.