Some Japanese aluminium buyers have agreed to pay a global

producer a premium of $350 per metric ton over the benchmark

price for shipments from April to June, up 79% from the current

quarter, two sources directly involved in the pricing talks

said.

Japan is a major Asian importer of aluminium and the premiums

for primary metal shipments it agrees to pay each

quarter over the benchmark London Metal Exchange (LME) cash

price set the benchmark for the region.

Negotiations are still ongoing, one of the sources said,

noting other producers have yet to make concrete offers.