LONDON, Aug. 10 -- Aluminum crossed $3,300 per tonne on Monday morning for the first time since June 22, extending August's rally to roughly 3.5 percent since the month began and returning the metal to price levels that had been absent from the market for seven weeks.

Trading data showed aluminum futures at $3,305.85 per tonne as of 06:34 GMT, up 0.9 percent from Friday's close. The crossing of $3,300 - a round-number benchmark tracked by industrial buyers, procurement managers, and traders with position exposure to base metals - came during early European hours, when thin liquidity can amplify directional moves but rarely sustains them against the underlying trend without genuine demand support.

August's 3.5 percent gain is the number ...