Russia’s United Company RUSAL Plc is to expect a rise of 6% in global aluminium demand in 2013, driven by investment in Chinese infrastructure projects, Reuters reported this week.
This is welcome news after a difficult year for aluminium producers. A perfect storm of the global economic recession and the European debt crisis weighed heavily on aluminium prices, but this trend is not set to continue.
RUSAL’s new optimism is also the result of new and growing demand for aluminium in India and North America for use in drink cans, aircraft and consumer electronics – including Apple’s iPad table computers. It appears that although the global economic recovery is still uncertain, clear signs of growth in aluminium production became apparent in the closing months of 2012 as key markets increased consumption of the metal. These markets including North America, China and other Asian countries remain at the head of aluminium demand as we move into 2013, demand which is amplified by the automotive sector and large scale infrastructure.
China is expected to remain as the largest growing market in the year ahead with a growth rate of 9.5%, with India and North America flowing at 6% and 5% respectively. RUSAL predicts global aluminium consumption will reach 50 million tonnes this year – encouraging news indeed for aluminium producers.
