TOKYO, Feb 20 (Reuters) - A major aluminium producer has made an indicative offer of a premium of $125 per tonne to Japanese buyers for April-June primary metal shipments, up 32 percent from the last quarter, three sources directly involved in pricing talks said on Monday.
Japan is Asia's biggest aluminium importer and the premiums for primary metal shipments that it agrees to pay each quarter over the London Metal Exchange (LME) cash price set the benchmark for the region.
The offer comes as premiums climb in the United States and Europe, and as some Japanese buyers face lower inventories due to healthy local demand.
For the January-March quarter, Japanese buyers agreed to pay a premium of $95 per tonne (PREM-ALUM-JP), up 27 percent from the prior quarter due to higher spot premiums.
The quarterly pricing negotiations between Japanese buyers and miners, including Rio Tinto Ltd , Alcoa Inc , South32 Ltd and Rusal, are expected to continue through next month.
(Reporting by Yuka Obayashi; Editing by Joseph Radford)