It's been harder for aluminum producers in the export market, with outbound shipments of semi-finished products dropping 23.8 percent in the first two months of the year to 590,000 tonnes.

While aluminum exports have struggled, it does appear that rising prices have incentivised Chinese smelters back into the game.

The most active ShFE contract has gained 18.3 percent since its record low in late November, and closed on Tuesday at 11,515 yuan ($1,775) a tonne.

This price is just above the 11,500 yuan level that Beijing-based industry consultant AZ China nominated in a March 9 report as key for idled smelters to restart.

The higher price does appear to have resulted in rising imports of alumina, up 23.1 percent in the first two months of the year, and bauxite, up 52.5 percent.

However, the restart of smelters is also likely to act as a cap on prices, and this may already be visible in the ShFE contract, which has remained largely range-bound since March 8.

Crude oil imports are up 9.3 percent in the first two months of the year to 58.49 million tonnes, equivalent to about 7.12 million barrels per day (bpd).

But exports of oil products are up a massive 60 percent over the same period to 6 million tonnes, or about 730,000 bpd, suggesting the bulk of the extra crude being imported is simply being processed into fuels and exported.

Overall, the commodity import data shows that China's demand for natural resources remains solid, but isn't necessarily a sign of an economy regaining momentum.

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