Futures: The most-traded cast aluminium alloy contract 2602 opened at RMB 21,080 per tonne overnight, hit a high of RMB 21,135 per tonne and a low of RMB 21,030 per tonne, and finally closed at RMB 21,130 per tonne, up RMB 20 per tonne, or 0.09 per cent, from the previous trading day. Bears mainly reduced positions.
Spot-Futures Price Spread Report: According to SMM data, on December 18, the SMM ADC12 spot price theoretically traded at a premium of RMB 580 per tonne to the most-traded cast aluminium alloy contract (AD2602) at the 10:15 closing price.
Warrant report: SHFE data showed that on December 18, the total registered volume of cast aluminium alloy warrants was 70,192 tonne, an increase of 767 tonne from the previous trading day. Among them, the total registered volume in Shanghai was 4,757 tonne, unchanged from the previous trading day; the total registered volume in Guangdong was 22,571 tonne, an increase of 827 tonne from the previous trading day; the total registered volume in Jiangsu was 12,050 tonne, unchanged from the previous trading day; the total registered volume in Zhejiang was 24,475 tonne, a decrease of 60 tonne from the previous trading day; the total registered volume in Chongqing was 5,919 tonne, unchanged from the previous trading day; the total registered volume in Sichuan was 420 tonne, unchanged from the previous trading day.
Aluminium scrap: Spot primary aluminium prices edged down slightly on Thursday from the previous trading day, with SMM A00 spot closing at RMB 21,730 per tonne. The aluminium scrap market was largely stable overall. Baled UBC was quoted in a range of RMB 16,250-16,750 per tonne (tax excluded), and shredded aluminium tensile scrap (priced based on aluminium content) was quoted in a range of RMB 18,000-18,550 per tonne (tax excluded). Prices for clean tapping aluminium wire, mixed aluminium extrusion scrap free of paint, mechanical casting aluminium scrap, scrap motorcycle wheel, and mixed aluminium tensile scrap were basically stable or slightly raised by RMB 25-50 per tonne w-o-w.
The aluminium scrap market is expected to hover at highs this week, with the mainstream range for shredded aluminium tensile scrap (priced based on aluminium content) at 18,200-18,900 per tonne (tax excluded). The tug-of-war between sellers and buyers continues overall, requiring close tracking of primary aluminium fluctuations, environmental protection policies, and downstream procurement pace, while being wary of the risk of a pullback from highs.