With weak downstream consumption at month-end, suppliers had to lower prices to sell. [SMM South China Spot Copper]

SMM July 31 News:

Today, Guangdong #1 copper cathode spot prices against the front-month contract: high-quality copper was reported at 120 yuan/mt, down 30 yuan/mt from the previous trading day; standard-quality copper was quoted at a premium of 40 yuan/mt, down 40 yuan/mt from the previous trading day; SX-EW copper was quoted at a discount of 20 yuan/mt, down 40 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. The average price of Guangdong #1 copper cathode was 105,790 yuan/mt, up 335 yuan/mt from the previous trading day, and the average price of SX-EW copper was 105,690 yuan/mt, up 330 yuan/mt from the previous trading day.

Spot market: Guangdong inventory fell for three consecutive days, with reduced arrivals being the main cause. Although inventory kept declining, this was more due to reduced supply. Recently, downstream consumption was weak, especially near month-end when many enterprises saw production cuts. Suppliers had to slash prices to sell, causing premiums to pull back significantly. Today, the purchasing sentiment for copper cathode in Guangdong was 2.41, down 0.09 from the previous trading day, and the selling sentiment was 2.90, down 0.06 (historical data can be checked by logging into the database).

Overall, weak downstream consumption at month-end forced suppliers to sell at lower prices, leading to a notable decline in spot premiums.