Date : 1st September 2024 : 

The Ministry of Commerce and Industry has recommended imposing an anti-dumping duty on aluminium foil imported from China after surging shipments from the neighbouring country captured nearly a third of India’s market share despite ample local production capacity.

The recommendation, contained in a report published by the ministry late on Friday (August 30, 2024) and submitted to the government for approval, seeks to address a threat to the domestic manufacturing industry, the directorate general of trade remedies said in the report.

It recommended a duty between $619 and $873 per metric ton on foil up to 80 microns thick, excluding aluminium foil below 5.5 microns for non-capacitor application.

Aluminium foil is used extensively as a packaging material for the conservation and preservation of edible products.

Source : https://www.thehindu.com/business/Economy/trade-ministry-proposes-anti-dumping-duty-on-chinese-aluminium-foil-imports/article68590606.ece

Date : 15th November 2024

China’s finance ministry said Friday that it would end its export tax rebate policy for aluminium, starting from 1 December. This will have implications for the global aluminium market . China’s cancellation of its export tax rebate policy is expected to make Chinese aluminium more expensive on the international market

In the near term, the cancellation of rebates will make Chinese aluminium more expensive on the international market and could lead to a reduction in export volumes. Chinese aluminium exports have surged over the past two decades. 

This recent move could also lead to a shift in trade dynamics – countries that rely heavily on Chinese aluminium might have to look for alternative supplies to fill the gap left by reduced Chinese exports. However, the capacity for output growth elsewhere is limited. China is the biggest producer of aluminium. Last year it produced around 40 million tones of the metal, which accounted for more than a half of the total global production. The global aluminium market is expected to return to deficit from 2026.

Meanwhile, end-users might also have to face higher costs for their raw material, which could be eventually passed on to consumers. This could have an effect on the automotive, construction and packaging industries.

In the longer term, this policy change could lead to further shifts in global trade dynamics, benefitting other commodity producers as countries try to diversify their raw material source dependency on China.

Source : https://think.ing.com/articles/china-ends-tax-incentives-on-aluminium-exports/

Due to its versatility and multiple uses, aluminium foil turns out to become one of the most consumed aluminium products across the world. Growing at 3.9% per annum in recent years, the global aluminium foil usage reached 5.33 million tonnes in 2018 and is further, forecast to reach 6.71 million tonnes by 2025. China’s aluminium foil usage is estimated at 2.43 million tonnes in 2018 which accounts for about 46% of the world usage. From the point of view of end-user sector, consumer applications account for a bulk of the aluminium foil usage and in 2018 the segment accounted for 69% of the global foil demand. Industrial applications accounted for the rest 31%.

The global demand for aluminium foil is expected to be led by China and the emerging markets in the coming decades. The growth in China will be followed slowly by mature US and European markets. China’s aluminium foil market is expected to outpace the global usage with the country’s demand forecast to grow at 4.7% per annum during the next seven years. However, slowdown in Chinese economy might impact the forecast in the coming years.

World aluminium foil production capacity stood at an estimated 6.85 million tonnes in 2018. China accounted for about 63% of the world foil production capacity equating to about 4.3 million tonnes. China is not only the largest producer and consumer of foils, but also the highest exporter of aluminium foils, which led countries like the U.S., Mexico, Turkey and others to take up restrictive trade actions against Chinese foil import.

Source : https://www.alcircle.com/specialreport/315/aluminium-foil