Chalco Third-Quarter Net Drops on Weak Demand, Prices

By Xiao Yu

Oct. 26 (Bloomberg) -- Aluminum Corp. of China Ltd., the country's largest producer, said third-quarter earnings slumped 93 percent as metal prices dropped and slowing economic growth hurt demand.

Net income fell to 182.9 million yuan ($27 million), or 0.014 yuan a share from 2.29 billion yuan, or 0.191 yuan, a year earlier, the company, known as Chalco, said in a statement to the Hong Kong stock exchange, citing domestic accounting standards. Sales dropped 7.9 percent to 19.1 billion yuan.

Chairman Xiao Yaqing is shutting plants and curbing expenditure to counter a 22 percent drop in the metal price this year as China's economy grows at the slowest pace in five years. Alcoa Inc., the largest U.S. aluminum maker, on Oct. 7 posted a 52 percent decline in third-quarter profit.

``Demand looks bleak this quarter and next year due to an economic slowdown,'' Chris Ding, a Beijing-based analyst at China International Capital Corp., said before the announcement. ``With falling prices and squeezed margins, the aluminum industry will consolidate.''

Chalco's shares have slumped 85 percent this year in Hong Kong trading, worse than the 55 percent drop in the benchmark Hang Seng Index. The stock fell 14 percent on Oct. 24 to close at HK$2.48. Its yuan-denominated shares dropped 2.1 percent to 6.57 yuan in Shanghai.

Capacity Reduction

The Beijing-based company forecast on Oct. 6 that its third- quarter profit would drop by more than 50 percent, and on Oct. 22 said it will cut annual aluminum production capacity by 18 percent. JPMorgan & Chase Co. and CICC's Ding expect Chalco to post a loss in the fourth quarter.

Aluminum futures dropped by more than a fifth this year to 13,825 yuan a ton on Oct. 24 on the Shanghai Futures Exchange. Chinese smelters have an average production cost of 18,000 yuan to 18,500 yuan a ton, according to JPMorgan.

United Co. Rusal, the world's largest aluminum smelter, said Oct 16 that 75 percent of producers in China, Europe and the U.S. are unprofitable after the price of the metal plunged.

Aluminum demand will gain 6 percent this year, less than an earlier forecast of 8 percent, according to Alcoa estimates. North American demand will fall 10 percent, and Chinese growth will slow to 15 percent, trailing an expected 22 percent, the company said Oct. 8.

Chalco cut spot alumina prices three times in five months because of falling demand. The company reduced alumina production capacity 10 percent a company official said on Oct. 15. Alumina is used to make aluminum.

To contact the reporter on this story: Xiao Yu in Beijing at yxiao@bloomberg.net