South America alumina production tumbles

South American production of alumina tumbled 21.7% year-on-year to 842,000t in January, according to the International Aluminium Institute (IAI).

IAI's South America figures are for Brazil, Jamaica, Suriname and Venezuela, the region's only producers of alumina, the key input for aluminum.

Global alumina production totaled 11.2Mt last month, up from 11Mt in the same month 2018, IAI said. Output from China, the world's largest alumina producer, reached 6.13Mt in January, compared to 5.81Mt in the same period last year.

South America's output in the last 12 months was 9.76Mt.

In Brazil, the most important alumina producers are Alcan, Alcoa, BHP, Novelis, Norsk Hydro and CBA. The country is the region's largest alumina producer.