After the US stock market on Thursday, Alcoa Corp. (Alcoa Corp.), the largest aluminum producer in the US, announced financial results for the third quarter ending September 30, 2021. Thanks to the historic surge in aluminum prices, Alcoa achieved a strong rebound in performance and decided to begin paying dividends to shareholders.
Driven by a sharp rise in aluminum prices, Alcoa's stock price has nearly tripled from a year ago. Aluminum is widely used in a variety of products, from automobiles to Macbooks to beer cans, and supply chain issues and surging demand have boosted aluminum prices. Currently, international aluminum prices are hovering near the new high since 2008.
Looking ahead, Alcoa kept its aluminum shipment forecast unchanged at 2.9 million to 3 million metric tons; alumina shipments remained unchanged between 1410-14.2 million metric tons; bauxite shipments were lowered to between 49 million and 50 million tons, mainly due to reduced demand at Alumar refinery during the shutdown of unloaders in the third quarter.
Alcoa expects that compared with 2020, global annual demand for raw aluminum will increase by about 10% and exceed the level before the 2019 pandemic. The company also stated that inflationary pressure on raw materials and energy will continue.