Aluminum demand to hit 78-million tonnes – Rio Tinto

GLOBAL aluminium demand will rise by 24-million tonnes to 78-million tonnes annually by 2025, a Rio Tinto executive said at an industry conference on Tuesday, though market fundamentals will continue to force further capacity closures.

“Demand for our products is clearly healthy. The issue we face is excessive supply,” Alfredo Barrios, Rio Tinto’s CEO for aluminium, said at Metal Bulletin’s International Aluminium conference in Vancouver, adding that the aluminium market should return to balance in the next five years. – Reuters