Aluminum futures in the UK traded at $3,330 per tonne, a four‑week high, buoyed by persistent supply constraints and declining inventories. The ongoing US–Iran conflict has disrupted aluminum shipments from the Middle East, with GCC output down 44% year-on-year in July. LME stocks remain close to a 36-year low, while SHFE inventories fell 3% from the previous week, highlighting continued tightness in the physical market.
In Brazil, the Alunorte plant—the world’s largest alumina refinery outside China—temporarily reduced production to 50% of capacity in August, though output has since returned to full capacity after a temporary terminal access agreement was reached with its gas supplier. Some of the upward pressure on supply may be partially offset by planned capacity restarts and expansion projects at several producers, along with increasing exports from China, the world’s largest aluminum producer.