Shanghai aluminium hit on Wednesday a two-month trough while the London contract fell to a seven-week low as a drop in coal prices eased trader concerns over supply shortage of the metal. Aluminium smelting is an energy-intensive process and has been considered as one of the worst-hit sectors by China's power crisis, pushing up prices of the metal as coal hiked. But, thermal coal hit its 10% lower trading limit on Wednesday after Chinese state planner said it had asked major coal-producing provinces to probe and regulate illegal storage sites, and to crack down on hoarding behaviour. The most-traded December ... (full story)