China’s germanium, gallium ban could cost the US $3.4 billion
According to the USGS, gallium prices could increase by more than 150% and germanium prices by 26% in the event of a total ban.
Aluminum prices rose on Thursday as talks of fresh output curbs in top producer and consumer China fueled concerns about supply disruptions.
Three-month aluminum on the London Metal Exchange edged up 0.2% to $2,899 a tonne by 0241 GMT, while the most-traded October aluminum contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange advanced 2% to 22,735 yuan ($3,534.07) a tonne.
Both contracts have risen about 45% so far this year, hit by supply worries mostly from China.
Aluminum producer Shaanxi Nonferrous Yulin New Material will have to reduce its output by 50% in September as part of energy consumption controls, according to a local government document posted by consultancy MySteel.
The company has a smelting capacity of around 600,000 tonnes per year. Shaanxi Nonferrous Yulin and a local government official were not immediately able to comment on the document.
China’s aluminum output in August slipped for a fourth straight month, as restrictions on metal production and power usage in key smelting hubs kept supply tight.
(By Mai Nguyen; Editing by Devika Syamnath)
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