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Tasmania’s Kings Outdoor Living embraces aluminium with Capral support for locally made shade and shelter systems

Fri, 28 Aug 2026 06:00:00 +0530

Tasmanian manufacturer Kings Outdoor Living is increasingly turning to aluminium as it expands its locally made shade and shelter products for schools, parks, sporting clubs, hospitality venues and homes.

According to Capral Aluminium, the company has increasingly focused on local manufacturing to address the freight, handling and supply challenges involved in sourcing products from mainland Australia.

Sam King, Kings co-owner, said, “With the Bass Strait freight cost, and complexity, and timing, and damage, we thought, ‘We should probably start making some of this stuff.’”

The company initially manufactured many of its locally made products using steel. However, the weight of steel created practical challenges, particularly because Kings is involved in both manufacturing and installing its products.

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“Once you’ve carried large steel pipe up flights of stairs with a few guys, you realise the advantages of aluminium,” King said. He further stated, “Because we install what we make, our thought process is always really heavily orientated to how are they actually going to get that to that location.”

It has since incorporated aluminium into its modular product systems. This includes shade sail posts and umbrellas. The lighter weight of aluminium has helped with handling and installation, especially for products installed in coastal environments.

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Kings now employs around 17 people and uses CAD and 3D printing to develop and refine products before they move into manufacturing. The company also prefabricates components at its Sorell workshop, helping reduce the amount of work required during installation.

Capral Aluminium has supported Kings with extrusion design, material selection and technical advice. It also manufactures certain components that Kings does not produce in-house.

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“Capral’s capability, especially talking you through extrusions, how they work, and the grades of aluminium, was a bit of a learning curve for me,” King said. He said Capral’s technical support has also helped the company as it expanded its use of aluminium in product development.

Kings has started using Capral’s LocAl lower-carbon aluminium in some of its products. After supplying products to northern New South Wales, the company is now looking to expand beyond Tasmania and build its presence in mainland Australia while continuing to develop its manufacturing operations.

Meagan Lalonde joins Metra North America as Architectural Sales Manager

Thu, 27 Aug 2026 16:30:00 +0530

Metra North America, leading manufacturer of engineered architectural systems specialising in custom fenestration, curtain wall, and building envelope solutions, has announced that Meagan Lalonde has joined the company as Architectural Sales Manager.

Lalonde brings more than a decade of experience in the architectural building products Industry, most recently with NanaWall Systems, where she managed the northeast network of independent representatives and led corporate accounts strategy targeting hospitality and multifamily developers. Her background also includes roles at Steel Encounters, Centria, Halio Glass, and Dormakaba Crane.

“I am looking forward to growing Metra North America’s Building Systems and Architectural Solutions vertical, and bringing my knowledge and relationships to the table. Working with President Colin Brosmer, a known and trusted leader, will be a huge benefit as I aid in shaping the business growth for Metra," said Lalonde. “I am thankful for my husband Chris, who is also an experienced voice in our industry and my biggest supporter. He is a true partner and amazing father as I grow in this new role.”

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At Metra North America, Lalonde will focus on supporting the company's continued growth across its engineered façade and building envelope offerings.

Note: This article has been issued by Metra North America and has been published by AL Circle with its original information without any modifications or edits to the core subject/data.

Kirin looks to recycled aluminium and renewable energy for lower-carbon packaging

Thu, 27 Aug 2026 18:00:00 +0530

Japanese beverage company Kirin is exploring greater use of recycled and low-carbon aluminium as part of its efforts to reduce emissions from packaging and move towards a more circular packaging system.

The company is considering GHG-free aluminium produced using renewable energy, as well as lower-emission aluminium with a high recycling rate. It is also looking at the possible use of carbon-free aluminium cans.

Aluminium, PET and paper are among the packaging materials covered in Kirin’s climate risk assessment. The company estimates that carbon pricing could add JPY 43.8 billion (USD 275.4 million) to packaging costs by 2050 under its sustainable scenario, which assumes a stronger global shift towards a low-carbon economy.

To learn the future of aluminium in the packaging industry, explore our report "ALuminium in Packaging: Consumer Trends and Market Dynamics"

For its Scope 3 measures, Kirin expects to spend about JPY 200 million (USD 1.2 million) between 2025 and 2027 on recycled aluminium, green aluminium and low-carbon malt. The figure is expected to reach JPY 4.7 billion (USD 29.5 million) by 2030.

Senior Executive Officer for CSV Strategy at Kirin, Hiroaki Takaoka, said, “Deriving ‘integrated solutions’ that simultaneously tackle climate, biodiversity and resource circulation from a holistic perspective has now become a new prerequisite for corporate value creation.”

Packaging materials and agricultural raw materials account for about 70 per cent of Kirin’s Scope 3 emissions. As a result, the company is focusing on changes across its packaging supply chain, including greater use of recycled materials and closer work with suppliers on emissions reduction.

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Kirin is also increasing its use of recycled PET and plans to raise PET-to-PET horizontal recycling. At the same time, it is examining different aluminium options that can support its emissions-reduction targets while retaining aluminium as an important packaging material.

Takaoka added that the company is targeting 100 per cent renewable electricity by 2040 and net-zero emissions by 2050, with packaging, including aluminium, forming an important part of its wider transition plans.

Brazil’s aluminium beverage can market tracks shifting consumption patterns, maintains positive 2026 outlook

Thu, 27 Aug 2026 06:45:00 +0530

Brazil’s aluminium beverage can market is maintaining a positive outlook for 2026, with full-year growth expected in the low single digits. In the first half, 16.4 billion cans were sold in the country, during a period marked by shifts in the beverage industry, with new categories and consumption occasions gaining ground.

The market’s evolution comes in a year shaped by factors that could boost beverage demand, including the FIFA World Cup, elections and expectations of higher temperatures. While these drivers have yet to deliver their full anticipated impact, the outlook remains positive, supported by the diversification of consumption occasions and the can’s ability to adapt to emerging trends.

Beyond traditional categories such as beer and soft drinks, other beverages are expanding their presence in cans, including energy drinks, non-alcoholic beer, juice and water. In the first half, this group of categories grew by about 30 per cent and, for the first time, reached 1 billion units sold in a six-month period.

Packaging that keeps pace with a changing market

The diversification of the beverage market points to a transformation that goes beyond the performance of individual categories. Consumers are seeking new options, products suited to different occasions and greater convenience, while aluminium cans keep pace by combining attributes valued across a wide range of consumption moments.

“The first half shows more than the performance of a single period: it shows how the market is changing. New categories, products and occasions are gaining ground, and the can is evolving alongside them. Convenience, versatility, product protection and sustainability are attributes that help explain its growing presence across different consumption occasions,” said Guilherme Canielo, Corporate Affairs at Abralatas.

To learn the future of aluminium in the packaging industry, explore our report "ALuminium in Packaging: Consumer Trends and Market Dynamics"

Positive outlook for the second half

“The outlook for the full year is as important as the performance achieved so far. Even though some of the factors expected to stimulate demand in the first half fell short of expectations, the segment has demonstrated resilience, supported by beverage diversification and the characteristics of the can. That is what allows us to maintain a positive view for the months ahead,” Canielo said.

Regulation should keep pace with market transformation

For Abralatas, sustaining this development also depends on a regulatory environment that recognises the characteristics and different impacts of packaging solutions throughout their life cycles.

“It is important that decisions affecting the sector take a balanced view of the environmental, economic and social aspects of packaging. Brazil has a mature recycling chain and a package that can continuously return to the production cycle. Recognising these characteristics can help align public policy with the advances already being made by the industry,” Canielo said.

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As Brazil moves forward with regulations related to its Tax Reform, Abralatas advocates for objective sustainability criteria for packaging to be considered, encouraging solutions that are already delivering tangible results for the country’s circular economy.

Note: This article has been shared by Abralatas and has been published by AL Circle with its original information without any modifications or edits to the core subject/data.

7075 aluminium chassis and heatsink support BotBlox’s 40g SwitchCore module

Wed, 26 Aug 2026 10:00:00 +0530

BotBlox has introduced SwitchCore, a compact 40-gram Layer 2 networking module featuring a 7075 aluminium enclosure that serves as both the structural chassis and heatsink. Measuring 27.6 × 27.6 × 10.7 mm, the module provides eight-port Fast Ethernet functionality for space- and power-constrained platforms while using 1 W of power.

The 7075 aluminium enclosure eliminates the need for additional cooling hardware and also helps protect the internal electronics from shock, vibration and environmental ingress. The module is designed for applications including unmanned aerial vehicles (UAVs), unmanned surface vessels (USVs), ground robotics, industrial systems and defence payloads.

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SwitchCore operates on a 4–40 V input and stacks directly onto a custom carrier board, allowing engineers to choose their preferred connector types and layouts, including circular connectors, RJ45 ports, board-to-board connections and custom harnesses.

The module features eight galvanically isolated 10/100BASE-T Ethernet ports and comes with embedded BloxOSLite firmware, which supports configuration through a TTL UART interface. Current functions include port management, VLAN configuration and port statistics, while additional Layer 2 and Layer 3 routing capabilities are under development.

A SwitchCore Baseboard is also available as a plug-and-play development platform for evaluating the hardware before full system integration.

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Could kitchen aluminium foil replace costly terahertz polarizers?

Mon, 24 Aug 2026 18:10:00 +0530

A team of Australian researchers has found a surprisingly simple way to make terahertz polarizers: using ordinary aluminium kitchen foil and a precisely controlled laser. The result could cut manufacturing costs dramatically while opening the door to faster production of these tiny optical components.

What if a piece of aluminium foil from your kitchen could help solve a problem that normally costs scientists thousands of dollars?

That is the question behind a new study from researchers at the ARC Centre for Transformative Meta-Optical Systems (TMOS) at The Australian National University (ANU), who have developed a way to make tiny devices called wire-grid polarizers using ordinary aluminium foil.

The team used a nanosecond laser with precisely controlled pulses to carve microscopic metal grids directly into the foil. The process can produce a working polarizer in as little as 15 seconds, without the need for cleanrooms, specialised fabrication facilities or conventional wire-winding techniques.

And while the humble kitchen foil is not yet ready for commercial use, the researchers believe the manufacturing approach could eventually lead to polarizers that are cheaper, faster to produce and potentially even better performing.

Why are these tiny devices so expensive?

The idea started with a problem that researchers at TMOS kept running into.

Professor Ilya Shadrivov, a co-author of the study published in Optics and Laser Technology, said the team needed polarizers for experiments involving terahertz frequencies, but found that the components could cost thousands of dollars each.

“We were doing experiments in the terahertz frequency range and figured that some of the components—particularly polarizers—were extremely expensive,” Shadrivov said. “So we looked at how they were made and thought, surely there's a way to make them cheaper and faster.”

Polarizers are fundamental components for controlling terahertz light. Terahertz technology can be used to see inside or through opaque materials such as clothes and packaging, without the cellular damage associated with X-rays.

The technology is also expected to play a role in future communications beyond 6G, while terahertz waves are already used in spectroscopy, imaging and materials research.

In other words, these tiny devices may not be familiar to most people, but they sit behind some pretty interesting technologies.

To learn the future of aluminium in the packaging industry, explore our report "ALuminium in Packaging: Consumer Trends and Market Dynamics"

The kitchen foil experiment

Rather than accepting the high cost of conventional polarizers, the researchers decided to see whether they could make one themselves.

The team took an ordinary sheet of aluminium kitchen foil and used a nanosecond laser to cut an extremely fine metal grid into it. By carefully controlling the laser pulses, they were able to produce a delicate, freestanding wire-grid polarizer.

The device does not need a supporting glass or plastic substrate underneath it. The process can be completed in as little as 15 seconds, while larger devices made from different metals can be produced in around one to two minutes.

Doctoral student Oleg Kameshkov, who led the device design, said the initial experiment used the simplest material available before the researchers moved on to more industry-grade metals, including tungsten.

“We took just your kitchen aluminum foil and made our polarizer out of it. It costs almost nothing,” Kameshkov said.

From a 'Shark Tank' idea to a working device

The concept itself came from an internal TMOS 'Shark Tank' competition held last year, where researchers were challenged to pitch ideas with commercial potential.

Shadrivov said the competition prompted the team to think about how their research could become an actual product.

The device design was led by Kameshkov, while fabrication work was carried out by Dr Vladlen Shvedov, also from TMOS at ANU. But turning the idea into a working device was not as simple as pointing a laser at a sheet of foil.

Finding the laser sweet spot

The researchers had to work out exactly how much laser energy was needed to cut the microscopic grid.

Too much energy could cause the tiny wires to buckle, while too little would leave the foil uncut.

After months of experimentation, the team identified a laser setting that allowed the microscopic metal grids to be carved without destroying them.

The resulting polarizer can be manufactured without the complex, multistep processes traditionally used to produce these devices.

Conventional manufacturing can involve sophisticated lithography in expensive cleanrooms or precision equipment that winds microscopic tungsten wires individually. Kameshkov compared the latter approach with the manufacturing of old incandescent light bulbs.

“People wind incredibly fine tungsten wire inside those bulbs,” he said. “It's very similar to how many polarizers are still made today.”

Both approaches can be expensive and difficult to scale. The laser-based technique, by contrast, offers a potentially faster and simpler manufacturing route.

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Polarizers are the 'bread' of terahertz research

For anyone outside the field, spending thousands of dollars on a tiny polarizer might seem excessive but for researchers working with terahertz waves, these components are fundamental.

Kameshkov compared them to one of the most basic foods we eat. “If you don't want to be hungry, the basic food you eat is bread,” he said. “Polarizers are like that for scientists. They're a very basic element for measurements—for everything.”

That simplicity is part of what makes the team's manufacturing approach interesting. Rather than trying to reinvent what the polarizer does, the researchers are looking at whether they can completely rethink how it is made.

Aluminium foil is only the beginning

There is, however, one major catch: kitchen aluminium foil is not robust enough for commercial products.

The researchers are therefore experimenting with stronger materials, including tungsten and copper, to find the right balance between manufacturing cost, mechanical durability and optical performance.

The goal now is to determine how far the laser-fabrication approach can be pushed without sacrificing the performance of the finished polarizer.

“We solved the fabrication problems,” Kameshkov said. “Now we're trying to find the trade-off between mechanical stability and the optical properties of the polarizer.”

And the researchers are not necessarily aiming simply to make today's polarizers cheaper.

Shadrivov says the bigger ambition is to challenge the assumption that better performance has to come with a higher price.

“Usually, if you want something that performs better, you expect it to cost more,” he said. “But here we're hoping to make something that's not only cheaper—but performs even better than what is available commercially.”, he added.

For now, the experiment has turned an everyday sheet of aluminium foil into an unlikely research tool. The next step is seeing whether that same idea can evolve into a durable, scalable manufacturing technology for the terahertz devices that researchers may increasingly rely on.

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Metal packaging leaders call for clarity, competitiveness and collaboration

Mon, 24 Aug 2026 09:30:00 +0530

Europe’s metal packaging industry is facing mounting pressure from rising costs, regulatory uncertainty, geopolitical tensions, labour shortages and competition from alternative materials. But according to three industry leaders, its biggest challenge may be internal: moving faster, communicating more effectively and acting with greater unity. Iris Arsic reports.

Speaking at the Metal Packaging Europe (MPE) conference in Berlin, Paulo Sousa, CEO of Colep Packaging and president of MPE, Seàn Cairns, president of Sonoco Consumer Packaging EMEA & APAC, and Michael Mapes, CEO of Trivium Packaging, argued that metal packaging enters this period from a position of strength. The industry already has proven circularity and strong sustainability credentials. The challenge, they said, is ensuring those advantages translate into competitiveness, growth and long-term investment.

As Cairns put it: “We’re not victims. We’ve got an amazing product which has stood the test of time. Let’s be proud of it.”

To learn the future of aluminium in the packaging industry, explore our report "ALuminium in Packaging: Consumer Trends and Market Dynamics"

Navigating “the perfect storm”

Asked what keeps them awake at night, the three chief executives pointed to a combination of pressures reshaping the industry.

For Mapes, the concerns centre on people, competitiveness and growth. “We don’t have a business without safe and fully engaged employees,” he said. “The second thing keeping me up at night is competitiveness. We’ve got to be competitive with other substrates, competitive versus other countries’ products being shipped in and, even lately, filled products being brought in.” Growth remains another challenge. “Growth has been a bit elusive for the entire packaging industry for the last couple years post-Covid,” Mapes said. “How do we start as an industry growing the pie?”

Sousa agreed that traditional business pressures have become significantly harder to manage in today’s geopolitical climate. “We now have a slice of trade war in the middle of this, which is just creating the perfect storm,” he said. “It’s shifting completely the way that you play the game.”

He warned that escalating trade tensions are influencing investment decisions and industrial competitiveness across Europe. “At a certain point in time, it may well be a situation that some jobs will be lost, that we need to move production somewhere else. It’s what this trade war and this European, but also global policy and fight for global leadership is bringing to the business.”

For Cairns, however, the industry’s greatest challenge is relevance. “The truth of the matter is, the thing that keeps me awake is making sure we maintain our leadership,” he said. Having returned to the sector after almost two decades away, Cairns said he was struck by how slowly the industry continues to operate. “Our industry already has the circularity, technical expertise and manufacturing capability. Our task now is to innovate faster and communicate those strengths more effectively and faster.”

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Europe needs clarity

The conference venue in Berlin hosted two days of discussions in June on the challenges and opportunities facing Europe’s metal packaging industry.

Although all three senior executives recognised regulation’s role in advancing sustainability and supporting industry, they raised concerns about uncertainty in Europe’s changing regulatory landscape. “Regulations should make it easier for business to thrive and for investment decisions to be made,” Sousa said. “In the current scenario, the sort of regulations that are coming are creating more uncertainty in the business and making decisions more difficult.”

For manufacturers making long-term investments, predictability is essential. “The one thing I need is clarity,” Cairns said. “For most of us doing investments, you’re talking five, ten years.” He summed up the disconnect between industrial planning cycles and shifting regulation succinctly: “You feel as if you’re playing football and somebody is playing cricket, you just don’t feel you’re playing the same game.”

Mapes argued that regulation can become a source of competitive advantage, but only if it is applied fairly. “It’s super important that we get the framework and the regulatory part right because it can be a source of huge competitive advantage, but it’s got to be fair.” One concern is the treatment of imported products entering the European market. “When you have filled product coming in that’s also not taxed, not only the can, but it’s also coming in and taking jobs away from farmers,” he said. “Our customers are losing out, and so the whole ecosystem is challenged.”

The discussion repeatedly returned to Europe’s industrial competitiveness. “How is it possible that we would let areas like China be able to import filled cans?” Mapes asked. “If the Chinese will subsidise their farmers and get such low costs and create so much capacity and they’re able to dump stuff, at some point we’ve got to wake up.”

Despite these concerns, Sousa remained convinced Europe has the foundations to compete. “We’ve got great education, great engineering, great innovation and tremendous diversity,” he said. “The problem is that we’re not focused enough in getting our heads straight and building the structures that we need to be more competitive than the others. It has nothing to do with the others. It has to do with us.”

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Sustainability must deliver value

If there was one topic that united the panel, it was confidence in metal packaging’s sustainability credentials. At a time when policymakers, retailers and brands are increasingly focused on circularity and resource efficiency, the chief executives argued that metal packaging enters the debate from a position of strength.

“Everyone is talking about circular economy,” Sousa said. “Metal has been doing circular economy for more than 200 years, so don’t come and talk to us about circular economy. We already do it.”

Yet he believes that advantage is not always recognised within existing policy frameworks. “It’s completely unfair that metal packaging can be segregated so easily, and recycling is paying a fair amount of the cost, while other materials such as multilayer packaging are heavily subsidised.

“The value that metal brings to the table is not passed on to consumers because of those things. It’s important that we build some muscle, otherwise we may lose a battle that’s ours to win. We can grow, but these things need to be addressed in the market.”

The panel repeatedly stressed, however, that sustainability alone is no longer enough. “Sustainability can only be sustainable if it has an economic purpose for it,” Sousa said. “Sustainability and competitiveness need to be together.”

Mapes agreed. “Sustainability is going to become more and more table stakes,” he said. “At the end of the day, it has to lead to better economics.”

For the three top executives, the challenge is no longer proving that metal packaging is sustainable. The challenge is ensuring that sustainability translates into value. As Cairns noted: “The vast majority of people, as long as it’s cost-effective, they’ll buy it. We can’t kid ourselves. It’s got to be relevant.”

From competitors to advocates

One of the strongest themes to emerge from the discussion was the need for the industry to communicate its advantages more effectively. Despite metal packaging’s strong recycling performance and circular economy credentials, the panel questioned whether the sector has done enough to educate consumers, policymakers and brand owners.

From left to right: Paulo Sousa, CEO of Colep Packaging and president of MPE, Michael Mapes, CEO of Trivium Packaging, moderator Marianna Evenstein, and Seàn Cairns, president of Sonoco Consumer Packaging EMEA & APAC.

“It’s up to us, individually and through MPE, to educate,” Cairns said. “That comes down to us to work as an industry.” He challenged the sector to become more proactive. “If you don’t disrupt this industry, somebody’s going to come in and disrupt it for you.”

Innovation remains central to that effort, but Cairns warned against pursuing it without a clear market need. “There’s no point inventing the best thing that nobody wants,” he said. “We’ve got to get our R&D teams and our scientists and our engineers actually inventing stuff that people want to buy.”

For him, sustainability should be viewed as a platform for growth rather than a defensive argument. “Sustainability is actually going to be a big aim for the future, and we’ve got a competitive edge. It’s about being different and continuing to be different.”

MPE needs to “build muscle”

As the discussion drew to a close, attention turned from identifying challenges to defining the industry’s response.

Sousa believes meaningful progress has already been made. “We built bridges,” he said. “We’re now all the members of MPE much more together than we were three years ago.” But he argued that cooperation alone will not be enough. “We need to build strength, resilience and agility. MPE now needs to build muscle to maintain our competitiveness as an industry.”

Mapes agreed. “We’ve got to be more proactive. We’ve got to be more coordinated as a group. We’ve got to take it to a whole new level.” For Cairns, the challenge ultimately comes down to confidence. “It’s time to reinvigorate this industry and actually realise that we can create the future together. But the only people that are going to change this industry are the people in this room. We’ve got an amazing product which has stood the test of time. Let’s be proud of it. Let’s energise our people.”

“We’ve got to make cans cool again,” said Mapes. His final remark drew laughter from the audience but also captured the challenge facing the sector. It may have been delivered with humour, but it reflected a serious point. Metal packaging already has many of the qualities consumers, brands and regulators increasingly demand. The next task is ensuring the market recognises it.

As Europe’s packaging leaders made clear in Berlin, the future of metal packaging will depend not only on how the industry responds to external pressures, but on how effectively it turns its strengths into growth, investment and influence.

A message beyond the panel

MPE CEO Krassimira Kazashka closes the conference with a call to unite

Closing the two-day conference, MPE CEO Krassimira Kazashka echoed many of the themes raised by the panel, urging delegates to unite behind a common purpose. “We’ve a rich history, a strong foundation, great people and the best packaging on the market. But if we’re the only ones who believe that, we have a problem.”

Calling on the sector to move beyond discussing its challenges, she added: “We need to wake up. We need to stop complaining and actually do something. We need to unite and fight for our business. And we need to do it together.”

Note: The article was originally published by The Metal Packager and republished in full by AL Circle without any modifications or edits to the core subject/data.

China EV sales create record-high penetrate rate in July

Mon, 24 Aug 2026 04:55:00 +0530

China's automotive industry remained broadly stable in July 2026, though the market entered its traditional off-season, with both month-on-month and year-on-year sales declining. However, the penetration rate of electric vehicles (EVs) hit a record high, with the decline largely driven by conventional fuel vehicles.

In July, the auto market entered its traditional off-season, with foot traffic and orders naturally declining. This was compounded by the pull-forward of some demand from mid-year sales campaigns, persistent high temperatures across the country, and typhoon and flood disruptions in some regions, all of which contributed to a seasonal month-on-month decline and a modest year-on-year dip. Exports continued to grow rapidly, exceeding 1 million units for the second consecutive month, with EVs accounting for more than 50 per cent of total exports for the second straight month.

According to data from the China Association of Automobile Manufacturers (CAAM), China's vehicle sales reached 2.584 million units in July 2026, down 8.04 per cent month-on-month and 0.35 per cent year-on-year. Conventional fuel vehicle sales stood at 1.023 million units, marking a decline of 12.34 per cent M-o-M and 23.14 per cent Y-o-Y, while EV sales reached 1.561 million units, falling 4.99 per cent M-o-M but rising 23.69 per cent Y-o-Y. Together, the July EV penetration rate reached 60.41 per cent, with domestic market penetration at 65.41 per cent, EV passenger vehicle penetration at 68.1 per cent, and EV commercial vehicle penetration at 46.94 per cent, all record highs.

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By end-June, China's total vehicle fleet stood at 371 million units, of which EVs accounted for 48.97 million units, or 13.19 per cent of the total, up 2.92 percentage points from a year earlier. In the first half of the year, 5.195 million new EVs were registered, representing 49.42 per cent of all newly registered vehicles, up 4.45 percentage points year-on-year.

Steady EV penetration and high oil prices in the first half, which curbed long-distance travel and boosted short-distance EV and public transport use, are set to displace 24 per cent of full-year gasoline consumption, or 46.6 million tonnes.

More recently, from May to July, gasoline consumption increased month-on-month as rising temperatures lifted vehicle air conditioning demand and summer holidays spurred long distance travel. According to OilChem's data, July gasoline consumption stood at 12.51 million tonnes, with average daily consumption up 4.55 per cent month-on-month but down 6.38 per cent year-on-year.

In August, with summer travel peak continuing, gasoline consumption is expected to rise to 12.95 million tonnes, up 3.51 per cent month-on-month and down 6.02 per cent year-on-year, with month-on-month growth continuing and the year-on-year decline narrowing further.

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China NEVs take 63.6% market share as petrol-car output falls 60%

Sun, 23 Aug 2026 03:30:00 +0530

China’s new energy vehicle retail sales declined in the first 16 days of August, but the segment continued to outperform the wider passenger-car market as higher fuel costs weighed more heavily on demand for petrol vehicles.

Passenger NEV retail sales reached 399,000 units from August 1 to August 16, down 15 per cent year on year but up 1 per cent from the corresponding period in July, according to the China Passenger Car Association. Overall passenger-vehicle retail sales fell 22 per cent year on year to 628,000 units.

NEVs retain a 63.6 per cent share

NEVs accounted for 63.6 per cent of passenger-vehicle retail sales during the period, underlining their continued market strength despite the decline in unit sales.

The penetration rate remained high, although it was below the record 65.1 per cent retail share reported for July.

Year-to-date passenger NEV retail sales stood at 6.067 million units, down 13 per cent year on year. Total passenger-vehicle retail sales for the year to date reached 10.801 million units, down 20 per cent from a year earlier.

The figures show that NEVs are continuing to gain relative importance within China’s auto market even as consumers become more cautious about car purchases overall.

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Fuel costs pressure petrol vehicles

The CPCA said higher oil prices have increased the operating and maintenance costs of petrol vehicles, weakening consumer willingness to buy conventional models.

China raised domestic refined-fuel prices twice in July by a combined nearly CNY 985 (USD 145) per tonne, after disruption to shipping through the Strait of Hormuz contributed to oil-market volatility. NEV prices remained broadly stable during the period.

The impact was particularly visible in production data. China produced 137,000 petrol-powered light vehicles during the first week of August, down 60 per cent year on year and 42 per cent from the same period in July.

Combined production of hybrid and plug-in hybrid vehicles was 73,000 units in the same week, down 33 per cent from a year earlier and 35 per cent from July.

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Wholesale data shows resilience

Passenger NEV wholesale sales reached 425,000 units from August 1 to August 16, down 3 per cent year on year but up 6 per cent from the corresponding period in July.

NEV wholesale penetration reached 72.9 per cent, rising from 70.9 per cent in the first week of August. Year-to-date NEV wholesale sales totalled 8.673 million units, up 7 per cent year on year.

By comparison, overall passenger-vehicle wholesale sales totalled 583,000 units in the first 16 days of August, down 25 per cent year on year and 1 per cent from the same period in July. Year-to-date wholesale sales were 15.393 million units, down 6 per cent year on year.

August recovery expected

The CPCA expects the auto market to improve in the second half of August, supported by the back-to-school season, demand for smaller electric vehicles, available trade-in subsidy funding and new-model launches around the Chengdu Auto Show.

The association said consumer sentiment remained cautious, but the combination of new EV launches and subsidy support could strengthen demand later in the month.

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Recorp enters Australia with 550m-can capacity, 85% recycled aluminium push

Fri, 21 Aug 2026 08:04:00 +0530

New Zealand-owned aluminium beverage can manufacturer Recorp has entered the Australian market, offering beverage companies access to multiple can formats from its South Auckland manufacturing facility. The company is positioning flexible production, lower minimum order quantities (MOQs) and high recycled aluminium content as key advantages as it targets Australian beverage brands.

Recorp will serve Australian customers from its 16,000-square-metre plant in Manukau, South Auckland. The facility, which opened in November 2024 following an investment of NZD 115 million (USD 89.54 million), has annual manufacturing capacity of around 550 million cans.

The production line can run at up to 1,850 cans per minute and includes eight bodymakers, dual decorators and equipment designed to enable relatively fast changes between different can heights and diameters.

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Multiple can formats for Australian beverage brands

Recorp’s Australian offering includes 250ml Slim and 330ml Sleek and Classic cans in 330ml, 375ml, 440ml, and 500ml formats. The Classic range can also be manufactured with either 200- or 202-diameter ends.

The company said the plant’s manufacturing flexibility allows it to accept lower MOQs and shorten lead times. This could help smaller beverage producers, as well as larger companies testing new products, limit their initial inventory commitments. Recorp has not disclosed its minimum order volumes.

Founder and Chairman Rob Fyfe mentioned that the flexibility was incorporated into the facility from the beginning.

“The plant is set up in a way that lowers minimum order quantities, allowing brands to trial new products without the same level of upfront investment,” he said.

That would reinforce the “small and medium-sized brands as they grow and gives larger businesses more scope to test new beverage concepts.”

Fyfe, a former CEO of Air New Zealand, founded Recorp with backing from private New Zealand investors. CEO Bruce Parton, also a former Air New Zealand executive, is leading the company’s expansion across the Australasian market.

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ReCan85 adds recycled aluminium proposition

Alongside its manufacturing flexibility, Recorp is introducing ReCan85, a beverage can manufactured with 85 per cent recycled aluminium.

The company describes the product as being among the highest recycled-content beverage cans available in Australasia, compared with what it identifies as an international industry average of around 60–65 per cent.

The recycled material includes post-consumer aluminium recovered from used beverage cans. Under Recorp’s New Zealand supply model, collected cans are processed offshore before the recovered aluminium returns to its Auckland facility for use in new can production.

The move comes as recycled content becomes an increasingly important consideration in beverage packaging. Australian manufacturer Visy, for instance, began an 18-month trial in 2025 involving an aluminium beverage can containing an average of 83 per cent recycled content.

Recorp targets wider beverage conversion to aluminium

Parton stated that Recorp’s broader objective is to increase aluminium’s share of the single-serve beverage market, particularly in categories currently dominated by plastic and glass bottles.

Although the Australian expansion has been described as a “launch”, Recorp has not announced an Australian manufacturing facility. For now, Australian beverage brands will be supplied through the company’s New Zealand production and customer service operation.

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