September Copper Foil Operating Rates Stay High; October Expected to See Volume and Price Increases [SMM Analysis]

    In September 2026, the operating rate of Chinese copper foil enterprises was 94.35%, up 1.28 percentage points MoM and up 15.91 percentage points YoY.Among them, the operating rate of large enterprises was 97.89%, medium-sized enterprises 85.85%, and small enterprises 80.73%. By product category, the operating rate of electronic circuit copper foil was 96.98%, up 0.6 percentage points MoM and up 16.12 percentage points YoY; the operating rate of lithium battery copper foil was 94.97%, up 1.67 percentage points MoM and up 12.13 percentage points YoY.

High operating rates persist, further solidifying the tight supply-demand pattern

    In September, the copper foil industry's operating rate climbed further toward near-full-capacity levels. The fundamental reason lies in the synchronized volume growth on the demand side from two main drivers: energy storage and computing power. In the ESS sector, large projects were delivered intensively and power battery production schedules rebounded; in the computing power sector, server and data center construction drove accelerated penetration of high-end copper foil. On the supply side, after capacity rationalization in previous years, the pace of capacity expansion slowed, keeping the supply-demand pattern persistently tight and shifting bargaining power toward copper foil producers.

Copper foil shipments continued to rise in September

    Production and sales improved in tandem. In September, industry raw material inventories fell 0.5% MoM, and finished product inventories fell 1.68% MoM. Overall copper foil shipments in September rose 1.22% MoM, with lithium battery copper foil shipments up 1.56% MoM and electronic circuit copper foil shipments up 0.57% MoM.

October 2026 copper foil industry operating rate forecast to rise to 96.02%

    SMM expects the overall operating rate of copper foil enterprises in October 2026 to be 96.02%, up 0.36 percentage points MoM and up 11.8 percentage points YoY, with overall shipments in September expected to rise 1.17% MoM. Looking ahead to October, the market is in the traditional peak demand season, with end-use demand from power batteries, energy storage, and AI computing power remaining highly robust. Driven by the combination of peak-season demand, tight supply, and product premiumization and structural upgrading, the copper foil market in October is expected to show a pattern of rising volumes and prices.