Alumina price panic in China a sign of future aluminium volatility

China's growing dependency on Guinean bauxite helps explain the oversized price reaction to events in Conakry. — Reuters

THE new year started with a bang in the Chinese alumina market.

The Shanghai Futures Exchange price for the product that sits between bauxite and metal in the primary aluminium production chain jumped 30% over the last two weeks of December, peaking at a Jan 3 high of 3,838 yuan per tonne.