As of Thursday, September 5, SMM copper stocks in major regions across the country decreased by 8,900 mt compared to Monday to 255,700 mt, and by 23,400 mt compared to last Thursday, marking the ninth consecutive week of destocking, with the destocking speed accelerating again to result in a new low in inventory since February. Compared to Monday, stocks in all regions across the country decreased. Total inventory was 155,200 mt higher than the same period last year (100,500 mt), with Shanghai 93,600 mt higher, Jiangsu 25,300 mt higher, and Guangdong 39,800 mt higher.
Specifically, Shanghai's inventory decreased by 5,500 mt compared to Monday to 168,700 mt, and Jiangsu's inventory decreased by 2,600 mt to 34,000 mt. This week, the arrival of domestic copper decreased, and imported copper was delayed due to port inspections. Additionally, with copper prices significantly falling, downstream consumption increased, leading to faster destocking in East China due to reduced supply and increased consumption. Guangdong's inventory decreased by 300 mt to 52,100 mt. Although Guangdong continued to accumulate inventory at the beginning of the week, the sharp decline in copper prices led to a rapid recovery in consumption, as reflected in the continuous increase in Guangdong's daily outflows from warehouses.
Looking ahead, according to SMM, the arrival of imported copper will increase next week compared to this week, but the arrival of domestic copper will remain low. It is expected that the total supply next week will slightly decrease compared to this week. On the downstream consumption side, with copper prices significantly falling and the Mid-Autumn Festival holiday approaching, downstream procurement is expected to increase. Therefore, we believe that next week will see a situation of reduced supply and increased demand, with weekly inventory expected to continue decreasing.
