Coca-Cola has recently reported issues supplying its aluminium cans
The price of aluminium reached its highest point in ten years on Monday as news emerged that there was a coup in Guinea.
Guinea is the second-largest producer of bauxite – a sedimentary rock with a relatively high aluminium content – in the world.
Prices for the metal, with uses ranging from beer cans to cars, reached as high as $2,776 per tonne on the London Metal Exchange.
Shares in aluminium producers moved up, as the commodity reached its highest point since May 2011.
Soldiers in Guinea claimed that had overthrown the country’s president over the weekend, which led to concerns over the supply of bauxite.
25% of the world’s bauxite is supplied by Guinea, in the most part to China and Russia.
“The increased uncertainty around the new political regime in one of the world’s largest bauxite-producing countries may disrupt global commodity export flows and also raises the likelihood of export contracts renegotiation, which may put upside pressure on alumina and aluminium prices,” said analysts at JPMorgan, as reported in the Financial Times.
The firm that bottles Coca-Cola’s drink in the UK and Europe recently reported a shortage of aluminium cans which it put down to supply chain pressures.
Nik Jhangiani, chief financial officer of CCEP, said: “Supply chain management has become the most important aspect following the pandemic, to ensure we have continuity for customers.”