TOKYO: Platts assessed spot premiums for Japanese aluminum imports at $105-$115/mt plus London Metal Exchange cash CIF Japan Monday, up from $100-$110/mt last Thursday, as fresh buying interest emerged amid thin spot seaborne cargo availability.
There were at least two Japanese buyers with interest for spot material in addition to quarterly contract supplies. However they have not specified volumes or shipping times, sources said. There was no deal, firm offer or bid reported Monday.
One Japanese buyer said an offer at $115/mt plus LME cash CIF Japan would be taken into consideration, while $120/mt plus LME cash CIF Japan would be rejected. Two producers had earlier told Platts they were sold out for the current quarter.
One producer said he would not not offer less than $115/mt plus LME cash CIF Japan, while another said not at $110/mt plus LME cash CIF Japan or below. “There is no intention to sell spot at the current quarterly contract premium [$110/mt plus LME cash CIF Japan]. There are inquiries [from non-Japanese buyers],” he said.
One Japanese trader and one consumer put the spot premiums at $100-$110/mt plus LME cash CIF Japan, unchanged from last week, as they were not seeing any spot interest.
“My view remains unchanged from the end of last year. Why buy spot when Q1 negotiations were finalized only recently?” the trader said. A second Japanese trader said buyers were seeking to buy at less than $110/mt plus LME cash CIF Japan as Japanese main port stocks remained high at around 400,000 mt, despite being lower than six months ago.
Japanese local spot trades were thin Monday and traders said they had not received any inquiries as some Japanese companies were still closed for New Year holidays. “Some buyers are in wait-and-see mode as LME aluminum that has rebounded above $1,500/mt may fall again,” the second trader said. Spot was offered at Yen 203.5-204/kg ($1,710/mt) ex-main port warehouses, flat from last week, he added.
