According to data from the General Administration of Customs online query platform, China's imports of copper ore and its concentrates in September were 2.5869 million mt, down 6.24% MoM but up 6.43% YoY. Shipments from the largest supplier, Chile, plunged over 30% to 649,400 mt, while shipments from Peru edged up to 590,000 mt. Major suppliers such as Mexico and Mongolia saw varying degrees of increase in their shipments. An accident occurred at the El Teniente mine, owned by Chile's Codelco, at the end of July, impacting Chile's overall copper production. There have been numerous disruptions in the copper ore supply this year, keeping spot copper concentrate TCs in China persistently low.
The following shows the supply situation of China's major import sources of copper ore since March 2020:
Data source: General Administration of Customs
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