Preliminary estimates show US and Canadian aluminum demand -- shipments by domestic producers plus imports -- totaled around 2.257 billion lb in April, a 1.4% increase compared with the same month in 2016, the Aluminum Association said Thursday.
Demand for semi-fabricated mill products totaled 1.618 billion lb in April, which was 1.9% higher than the year-ago period, the trade group said. Apparent consumption -- demand less exports -- in the US and Canada totaled 2.002 billion lb in April, up 1.6% year on year. At 8.142 billion lb, year-to-date apparent consumption is 4.1% higher than a year earlier.
US and Canadian aluminum ingot and mill product exports, excluding cross-border trade, totaled 255 million lb in April, down a half-percentage point from the year-ago level. The first four months of 2017 altogether accounted for exports of 956 million lb, marking a 6.1% year-on-year decline.
Meanwhile, April imports climbed 11% year over year to 727 million lb, according to the trade group.
Aluminum sheet and plate shipments added up to 893.4 million lb in April, over 3% above the April 2016 total of 866.4 million lb. Extruded product shipments fell about 2.3% year on year to 467.5 million lb.
Shipments of aluminum ingot for castings, exports and other uses totaled 639 million lb in April, up less than 1% compared with the year-ago period, according to the group.
Producer inventories came in below the 3 billion mark again during April at 2.916 billion lb, but were up 1.1% month on month. Compared with April 2016, producer inventories sat 2.1% lower.
US and Canadian aluminum imports of ingot, scrap and mill products in April were 12.5% higher year on year at 785 million lb.
Including scrap, which equated to about 51% of reported aluminum exports in the fourth month of 2017, exports totaled 522 million lb, up 8.8% compared with the year-ago month.
Excluding scrap, exports were 255 million lb, less than a percentage point drop compared with the year-ago period.
