LME Aluminum Price

LME (London Metal Exchange) aluminum price is the global benchmark for aluminum pricing. It represents the price of high-grade aluminum (99.7% purity) traded on the London Metal Exchange. LME prices are used worldwide as reference prices for aluminum contracts, with real-time updates reflecting global supply and demand dynamics.

Over 75% of physical contracts use 'LME Basis + Regional Premium' model: 1) Base price = LME 3M contract settlement, 2) Regional premium = $80-300/ton (e.g. $210 for US Midwest, $180 for Japan CIF), 3) Product surcharge = alloy-specific additions. This allows cost hedging through futures while maintaining regional/logistics flexibility.

Major downturns include: 1) 2008 crisis: -54.37% in 23 weeks, 2) 2022 energy crisis: -44.74% in 30 weeks, 3) 2025 tariff shock: -11.69% in 5 weeks. Recovery patterns show V-shaped rebounds when driven by macro events (2009: +89% in 7 months) but prolonged recovery during structural oversupply (2015: 14 months to regain 23.5% loss).

Official channels: 1) LME official data at 01:00 GMT daily (warehouse stocks), 2) Ring trading sessions (11:40-12:05 GMT & 15:10-15:35 GMT), 3) Registered warehouse reports (349,100t as of June 17). Critical ratios to monitor: 1) SHFE-LME arbitrage (current import loss $973/ton), 2) Cash/3M spread (+$15 backwardation as of June 2025).