China’s Copper Foil Operating Rate in February 2026 Beat the Same Period in Previous Years [SMM Analysis]

SMM March 9 News:

According to SMM, the operating rate of China's copper foil enterprises was 84.26% in February 2026, down 4.3 percentage points MoM and up 16.61 percentage points YoY. Among them, the operating rate was 88.36% for large enterprises, 64.98% for medium-sized enterprises, and 68.07% for small enterprises. By segment, the operating rate for electronic circuit copper foil was 80.33%, down 4.24 percentage points MoM and up 11.12 percentage points YoY; the operating rate for lithium battery copper foil was 86.33%, down 4.33 percentage points MoM and up 19.49 percentage points YoY. The overall operating rate of the copper foil industry is expected to rebound to 90.24% in March 2026.

Copper Foil Enterprise Operating Rate at 84.26% in February 2026

The operating rate declined seasonally in February due to the Chinese New Year, but the industry's operating level remained far higher than the same period in previous years. Demand side, although all segments saw seasonal weakening, the pullback was mild. Leading producers in the power segment maintained relative resilience, supported by overseas orders and supply assurance for key car models; in the ESS sector, deliveries of domestic end-use existing projects provided rigid-demand support; high-end industries such as AI servers remained strong.

Copper Foil Shipments Fell in February

Affected by the Chinese New Year, the finished product inventory/output ratio of the copper foil industry rose 0.54 percentage points MoM to 11.57%, and the raw material inventory/output ratio rose 0.55 percentage points MoM to 15.63%. Overall copper foil shipments fell 5.46% MoM in February, with lithium battery copper foil shipments down 5.33% MoM and electronic circuit copper foil shipments down 5.73% MoM. Overall shipments in March are expected to increase 7.84% MoM.

Copper Foil Industry Operating Rate Forecast to Rebound to 90.24% in March 2026

SMM expects that in March 2026, the overall operating rate of copper foil enterprises will be 90.24%, up 5.97 percentage points MoM and up 18.42 percentage points YoY. The operating rate for lithium battery copper foil in March is expected to be 92.46%, up 6.13 percentage points MoM and up 23.08 percentage points YoY. The operating rate for electronic circuit copper foil in March is expected to be 86.01%, up 5.68 percentage points MoM and up 9.44 percentage points YoY.

SMM expects the copper foil operating rate to rebound again in March and is likely to exceed 90%. Downstream demand is expected to recover quickly after the holiday; the power battery industry will enter the Q1 production schedule peak; with the substantive commissioning of new capacity for some large-capacity battery cells in the energy storage segment, production scheduling in the energy storage chain will move into a clear upward channel; the traditional consumer electronics industry is also expected to transition steadily into the peak season. In Q1 2026, the copper foil industry is expected to show a trend of rising volume and prices.