Aluminum starts the year on a bullish note

The value of aluminum has surpassed $3,000 per ton on metals exchanges in the United States and Europe, with observers pointing to reduced output and inventory levels as supply-side pricing factors.

Before the start of trading Jan. 5, the U.S.-based Comex listed its most recent aluminum trade at $3,050.75 per metric ton ($1.38 per pound). According to the Comex website, that trade was made at a value of $48.50 per metric ton, or about 1.6 percent, higher than the previous trade.

On the London Metal Exchange (LME) website, its day-delayed three-month closing price was $3,015.50 per metric ton ($1.37 per pound) as of early morning Jan. 5.

A Bloomberg report posted Jan. 2 by staff member Annie Lee points to a government-imposed cap on aluminum smelting capacity in China and ongoing constraints to European production tied to high electricity prices as having lowered global inventories of aluminum.

On the demand side, Lee says the outlook from the construction and renewable sectors remains robust.

Regarding inventories, an LME data recap for November 2025 shows its affiliated warehouses took in 23,500 metric tons of aluminum that month, while more than 40,000 metric tons departed from its warehouses, representing an inventory decline of more than 16,500 metric tons.

Recyclers and traders of recycled aluminum in the U.S. described that market to Recycling Today as “wild” in 2025. On the demand side, the sources indicated the ability of the Novelis facility in Oswego, New York, to resume and maintain a full melting schedule will be a considerable factor on the demand side.