Rio Tinto has proposed a fourth-quarter primary aluminum premium of $310 per tonne to its Japanese customers.

August 31 news, according to people familiar with the market, mining giant Rio Tinto has proposed a spot premium offer of $310 per tonne to Japanese buyers during the quarterly alumina pricing negotiations for the fourth quarter. This premium is an additional charge imposed on top of the London Metal Exchange (LME) aluminium price benchmark.

Japan's quarterly alumina premium is an important barometer for the East Asian aluminium spot market, reflecting regional spot supply and demand, logistics and trade premium levels. The proposed $310/tonne quote this time has dropped compared to the third quarter, which indirectly reflects that the spot supply of primary aluminium in the Asia-Pacific region is relatively loose and downstream demand performance is weak. At present, the two parties are still in the negotiation stage, and the quote has not yet reached a final agreement. There are still variables regarding the actual finalized premium in the follow-up.