is aluminum at last beginning to move up?

Is aluminum at last beginning to move up?
Aluminum, which has largely been passed by by the recent base metals market rally, surged 5% on weaker dollar and lower stocks.

Posted: Friday , 05 Jun 2009

NEW YORK (Reuters) -

Shares of U.S. aluminum producers soared on Thursday after the price of the metal rose more than 5 percent to its highest level in four weeks.

Traders attributed the rise to a weaker dollar and a second day of decreased aluminum inventories.

On the New York Stock Exchange, stock of Alcoa Inc (AA.N: Quote), the largest U.S. aluminum maker, closed 6.16 percent higher at $10.69.

On the Nasdaq, Kaiser Aluminum (KALU.O: Quote) ended the day's trading up 5.64 percent at $35.61, and Century Aluminum (CENX.O: Quote) was 5.28 percent higher at $6.18.

In the options market, some traders appeared optimistic on Alcoa, hoping for extended gains. In all, about 91,000 call options were traded in Alcoa, more than three times the number of its puts, according to option analytics firm Trade Alert.

Aluminum MAL3 for three-month delivery closed at $1,564.50 per tonne, up from $1,482 on Wednesday. During the day it hit $1,585, its highest price since May 7.

Inventory data offered some respite for the metal. Stocks fell for the second session in a row, dropping 6,900 tonnes to break a relentless rise since April 20 that had brought levels to above 4.2 million tonnes.