Tight supply and sellers holding back from selling; spot copper in North China at high premium [SMM North China spot copper]

Published: Sep 22, 2026 11:19 (GMT+8)

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Spot copper in North China was quoted at premiums of 980-1,120 yuan/mt against the front-month contract today, with an average premium of 1,050 yuan/mt, up 430 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. The average transaction price was 112,410 yuan/mt, up 1,805 yuan/mt from the previous trading day.

SMM, September 22:

In North China today, spot #1 copper cathode was quoted at a premium of 980-1,120 yuan/mt against the front-month contract, with an average premium of 1,050 yuan/mt, up 430 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. The average transaction price was 112,410 yuan/mt, up 1,805 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. As futures continued to rise, spot supply in the market was tight, and suppliers' willingness to sell weakened significantly. High copper prices combined with high premiums suppressed downstream purchases, and enterprises showed low interest in entering the market. Transactions were sluggish, pushing spot premiums in North China further higher. Today, the purchasing sentiment for copper cathode in North China was 1.54, down 0.49 from the previous trading day, while the selling sentiment was 1.89, down 0.4. ().

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