China’s Copper Inventories in Major Regions Declined for Three Consecutive Weeks [SMM Weekly Data]

SMM News, March 30:

Data Brief: As of Monday, March 30, SMM copper inventories in major regions nationwide fell 13.81% WoW from last Monday, with all regions continuing destocking.

Specifically, in Shanghai, arrivals of imported and domestic cargo were normal, downstream consumption continued to recover, and inventory declined steadily; in Jiangsu, downstream consumption also improved, but the destocking pace slowed somewhat as copper prices rose again; in Guangdong, downstream consumption remained robust, and coupled with tight supply, spot inventory continued to decline.

Outlook: imported cargo continued to arrive, while arrivals of domestic cargo slowed somewhat, leaving overall supply tight; on the demand side, downstream buyers mainly made just-in-time procurement, and overall consumption slowed slightly from the previous period. According to survey data, the weekly operating rate of copper cathode rod is expected to rise to 83.76% this week, up 0.59 percentage points WoW. Considering both supply and demand, the market has now formed a pattern of “stabilizing supply and temporary stabilization in consumption,” and social inventory is expected to continue declining this week.