Price spread between futures contracts once exceeded 800 yuan; downstream purchases were quiet, and spot premiums fell sharply [SMM South China spot copper]

Published: Sep 14, 2026 11:44

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SMM, September 14:

Today in Guangdong, spot prices of #1 copper cathode against the front-month contract: high-quality copper was quoted at a premium of 120 yuan/mt, down 130 yuan/mt from the previous trading day; standard-quality copper was quoted at a discount of 50 yuan/mt, down 200 yuan/mt from the previous trading day; SX-EW copper was quoted at a discount of 110 yuan/mt, down 200 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. The average price of #1 copper cathode in Guangdong was 108,910 yuan/mt, down 565 yuan/mt from the previous trading day, and the average price of SX-EW copper was 108,765 yuan/mt, down 600 yuan/mt from the previous trading day.

Spot market: After the weekend, Guangdong inventory finally saw a significant increase, mainly due to higher arrivals. With delivery approaching and a wide price spread between futures contracts, downstream purchasing interest was subdued. Suppliers had to keep cutting prices to sell. In early trading, standard-quality copper was quoted at parity, but there were few buyers. Suppliers had to lower prices further, and transactions were only concluded when standard-quality copper reached a discount of 50 yuan/mt. Today, the purchasing sentiment for copper cathode in Guangdong was 2.57, down 0.11 from the previous trading day, while the selling sentiment was 2.82, up 0.02 from the previous trading day (historical data can be queried in the database).

Overall, the price spread between futures contracts once exceeded 800 yuan, downstream purchases were quiet, spot premiums fell sharply, and overall trading was lackluster.

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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