On August 7, the SMM Imported Copper Concentrate Index (weekly) was reported at -$173.91/dmt, down $14.54/dmt from the previous -$159.37/dmt. The payable indicator for domestic trade ore with 20% grade stood at 98.5%-99.5%.
This week, spot market transactions were relatively active, but transaction prices declined further. In spot trading, a trader sold 30,000-50,000 mt of bundled ore for delivery from Q4 2026 to Q1 2027 to a smelter at -$170/dmt, QP: M+1/M+5; another trader sold 10,000 mt of clean ore at -$183/dmt to a smelter, with shipment in August/September, QP: M+1/M+5; a trader sold 40,000-60,000 mt of bundled ore for Q4 delivery at -$170/dmt to -$175/dmt to a smelter, QP: M+1/M+5; a trader sold 20,000 mt of bundled ore at -$174/dmt to -$175/dmt and also sold 10,000 mt of high-arsenic ore at around -$100/dmt to smelters, with shipment in Q4, QP: M+1/M+4; a trader sold 70,000 mt of bundled ore to smelters at an index minus $18/dmt, with shipment in Q4; a trader sold 10,000 mt of bundled ore for August/September shipment at an index minus $22/dmt to $23/dmt to smelters; a trader offered 10,000 mt of South American clean ore at an index minus $20/dmt. In mine tenders, on the trader side, the winning bid price for 10,000 mt of BISHA ore, September-October shipment, was -$240/dmt to -$230/dmt; the winning bid result for Chuquicamata was below -$200/dmt. Overall, fixed-price transactions increased in the spot market this week. Due to weather-related shipment delays from some mines in Chile and Peru, there was restocking demand. Coupled with rigid restocking needs from new smelting capacity, spot TC continued to deteriorate, and smelter profit margins kept narrowing. However, smelters had limited acceptance of low-priced supply. Downward pressure remained but downside room was limited.
According to foreign media reports, the DRC government signed a decree on June 29 to ban the export of copper and cobalt concentrates, effective immediately. Under "strategic" conditions, the Minister of Mines may still grant an export exemption for a period of one year. It should be noted that the DRC had already imposed strict controls on copper and cobalt concentrate exports. Under current policy, such exports are prohibited in principle, and enterprises must obtain government-approved export quotas or exemptions before shipping. Therefore, this policy is more about reaffirming and further tightening the existing management framework, rather than a sudden complete halt to copper concentrate exports. The additional impact of the ban on short-term global copper concentrate trade is likely to be relatively limited. What is more noteworthy is the policy signal it sends: As the strategic importance of critical minerals grows, resource-rich countries are using export restrictions, local processing mandates, and tax policies to capture a greater share of the industry chain and resource value added at home. Resource nationalism is increasingly disrupting global copper raw material flows and the supply landscape.
On August 4, Codelco announced that it had temporarily suspended the development and construction activities of the Andes Norte project at its El Teniente mine, due to a potential new-type seismic risk in the deep areas of the project. This measure only applies to the Andes Norte project and does not mean a full stoppage at the El Teniente mine. Other production areas at the mine continue to operate, with seismic monitoring and related safety measures in place.
According to the latest data from China Customs, China's copper concentrate imports in July 2026 totaled 2.379 million mt, up 1.88% MoM and down 6.93% YoY. From January to July 2026, cumulative copper concentrate imports amounted to 16.985 million mt, representing a cumulative YoY decline of 1.8%.
On August 6, 2026, SMM recorded copper concentrate inventories at eleven ports of 692,000 mt in physical content, up 27,600 mt in physical content from July 31. The main increase came from Fangchenggang Port and Qinzhou Port, up MoM by 20,000 mt and 29,000 mt respectively; the main decrease was from Yantai Port and Qingdao Port, down MoM by 22,400 mt and 20,000 mt respectively.
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