Copper Prices Surged Sharply, Downstream Demand Weakened, and Overall Trading Was Weaker Than Yesterday [SMM South China Spot Copper]

Published: Apr 8, 2026 11:35

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SMM April 8 update:

Guangdong #1 copper cathode spot prices against the front-month contract today: high-quality copper was quoted at a premium of 180 yuan/mt, up 10 yuan/mt from the previous trading day; standard-quality copper was quoted at a premium of 100 yuan/mt, unchanged from yesterday; SX-EW copper was quoted at a premium of 40 yuan/mt, unchanged from yesterday. The average price of Guangdong #1 copper cathode was 97,775 yuan/mt, up 830 yuan/mt from the previous trading day, and the average price of SX-EW copper was 97,675 yuan/mt, up 825 yuan/mt from the previous trading day.

Spot market: Guangdong inventory continued to decline and had fallen for 16 consecutive sessions, with tight supply being the main reason. Despite the continued inventory decline, as copper prices surged significantly, both traders and downstream buyers showed low willingness to restock today. Suppliers had to continuously lower premiums to close deals. During the early session, standard-quality copper was quoted at a premium of 120 yuan/mt, but transactions were scarce, and suppliers had to lower the premium to 100 yuan/mt or even 90 yuan/mt before deals were concluded. The purchasing sentiment for copper cathode in Guangdong today was 2.3, down 0.08 from the previous trading day, while the shipments sentiment was 3.81, up 0.02 from the previous trading day (historical data can be accessed via the database).

Overall, downstream demand weakened amid the sharp rise in copper prices, and overall trading activity was weaker than yesterday.

Data Source Statement: Except for publicly available information, all other data are processed by SMM based on publicly available information, market communication, and relying on SMM‘s internal database model. They are for reference only and do not constitute decision-making recommendations.

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