Month-End Trading in the Spot Market Was Muted on Both Sides, and Suppliers Found It Difficult to Attract Buying Interest Even After Cutting Prices [SMM Shanghai Spot Copper]

SMM News, March 30:

In the morning session, the SHFE copper 2604 contract opened lower with a gap and then gradually climbed. It opened at 95,440 yuan/mt, fell rapidly after the open to an intraday low of 94,860 yuan/mt, then gradually rebounded to a high of 95,740 yuan/mt, and closed at 95,630 yuan/mt. The inter-month contango spread ranged between 60 yuan/mt and 10 yuan/mt, while the import profit margin for the front-month SHFE copper contract ranged from a loss of 70 yuan/mt to a profit of 40 yuan/mt.

During the day, sales sentiment for copper cathode in Shanghai stood at 2.58, down 0.21 MoM, while purchasing sentiment was 2.48, down 0.2 MoM. . At the start of morning trading, suppliers quoted standard-quality copper at discounts of 60-40 yuan/mt, with Xiangguang and Lufang quoted at discounts of 50-40 yuan/mt, Dajiang PC and Tiefeng at a discount of 60 yuan/mt, and Jinguan, Jinxin, Jinfeng, and Jintun PC at ex-works discounts of 60-40 yuan/mt; high-quality copper such as Jinchuan (plate) was quoted at discounts of 20-10 yuan/mt. Later, as actual market inquiries were limited, suppliers slightly lowered prices, with standard-quality copper quoted at discounts of 70-50 yuan/mt; non-registered copper was quoted at discounts of 180-170 yuan/mt. Entering the second trading period, suppliers further lowered prices, with standard-quality copper such as ONSAN, Lufang, and Xiangguang quoted at discounts of 90-70 yuan/mt, and Dajiang PC, Tiefeng, Zijin, and OLYDA at discounts of 100-70 yuan/mt; high-quality copper Jintun plate remained firm due to scarce supply and was quickly traded at a discount of 20 yuan/mt; for registered SX-EW copper, only some Myanmar cargoes were circulating, quoted at a discount of 130 yuan/mt.

Looking ahead to tomorrow, the Shanghai spot copper market is expected to remain in the doldrums. Demand side, as it is currently month-end, most downstream enterprises have basically completed their monthly procurement plans, with limited new purchasing demand, and the remainder mainly focused on picking up goods under long-term contracts, resulting in few inquiries and sluggish transactions during the day. However, as a new monthly procurement cycle is expected to begin this Wednesday, coupled with stockpiling demand ahead of the Qingming Festival, downstream buyers with low inventories may see some increase in procurement demand, which could provide phased support to spot premiums. Supply side, imported cargoes have continued to arrive recently, and the destocking speed of social inventory in Shanghai has slowed, leaving overall circulating supply relatively ample and limiting room for discount repair. Overall, Shanghai spot copper against the 2604 contract is expected to remain at current levels tomorrow, and after mid-week attention should be paid to whether increased downstream procurement can drive a slight narrowing of discounts.