The Most-Traded BC Copper Contract Closed Down 2.66%, Trading Was Sluggish Ahead of the Chinese New Year [SMM BC Copper Review]

Today, the most-traded BC copper 2603 contract opened at 90,550 yuan/mt, hitting an early high of 90,840 yuan/mt before its center dropped straight to hit bottom at 88,220 yuan/mt. Copper prices then maintained a fluctuating trend, finally closing at 88,830 yuan/mt, down 2.66%. Open interest fell to 3,276 lots, down 205 lots from the previous trading day, while trading volume decreased to 4,606 lots, down 1,873 lots. On the macro front, Trump stated the US and Iran must reach an agreement or face severe circumstances, with Netanyahu expressing optimism; US Treasury Secretary offered Senate investigation into Powell as a condition to advance the nomination of a new Fed chair. Meanwhile, as the Chinese New Year holiday approached, bulls took profits and risk-off sentiment intensified, putting copper prices under pressure. On the supply side, due to earlier import arbitrage opportunities, locked SHFE/LME price ratio cargoes continued to arrive, keeping supply loose. Demand side, as the holiday neared, downstream enterprises were generally on break, leading to continuously weakening procurement demand.

The most-traded SHFE copper 2603 contract closed at 100,380 yuan/mt. Based on the BC copper 2603 contract price of 88,830 yuan/mt, its post-tax price is 100,378 yuan/mt, resulting in a price spread of -2 between the SHFE copper 2603 and BC copper contracts. The spread remained inverted and narrowed compared to the previous day.