China's Copper Imports Drop 16.1% in Jan-Feb 2026, Totaling 700,000 Tonnes

In April, China's copper plate/sheet and strip exports showed structural divergence. Copper strip was up 15.6% YoY, accounting for nearly 70% of the total and remaining the core export driver. Brass strip and cupronickel strip were up 9.0% and 25.0% YoY respectively, both rebounding MoM, with brass strip showing a notable MoM increase. Bronze strip and other categories still posted positive YoY growth, but pulled back MoM due to short-term order pace fluctuations. Overall, mainstream categories all maintained YoY growth, while MoM performance diverged due to differences in order pace.

[Imports of Copper Scrap Remained Strong YoY] In April, the structural supply gap of copper scrap in China remained prominent. The tight invoice situation showed no significant improvement, with invoiced supplies remaining scarce in circulation, driving domestic trade prices persistently higher. From March to April, spot bare bright copper prices for imports in Zhejiang stayed at elevated levels, with discounts against futures contract maintained at 300-800 yuan/mt. Downstream compliant copper enterprises, constrained by production, operation, and tax requirements, maintained stable just-in-time procurement. Imported sources became an important channel to fill the domestic raw material gap, supporting copper scrap imports to maintain YoY growth.

[Copper Scrap Exports from Core Supplying Countries Pulled Back in April] Thailand and Japan, the top two supplying countries, both saw their exports to China decline MoM in April, with Thailand down 14.22% MoM and Japan down 17.60% MoM. Although their combined share still exceeded 30%, the MoM growth disappeared, weakening their support for overall imports.