Aluminum Corp of China Ltd known as Chalco, said on Wednesday its sales of aluminium fell by 9.5% year-on-year in the first quarter as the coronavirus epidemic reduced demand, even as output held steady.

* The company sold 860,000 tonnes of aluminium during January to March 2020, according to a datasheet for analysts reviewed by Reuters, down from 950,000 tonnes a year earlier.

 Aluminium production was flat year-on-year at 950,000 tonnes, as smelters kept rates high during the epidemic, lifting inventories, while output of alumina, the substance used to make aluminium, rose 1.8% to 3.57 million tonnes

* Chalco remains the world’s second-biggest listed aluminium maker, ahead of Russian rival United Company Rusal, which reported production of 940,000 tonnes for the first quarter

* Chalco, which on Tuesday reported a 93% year-on-year drop in net profit in the first quarter as aluminium prices plunged, did not immediately confirm the numbers. (Reporting by Tom Daly; Editing by Christian Schmollinger)