In 2024, China's copper plate/sheet and strip import and export market grew rapidly. As of January to September 2024, customs data showed that the cumulative import of copper plate/sheet and strip increased by 17.59%, and the cumulative export increased by 23.5%. From the perspective of net imports, since January 2023, China has completely turned into a net exporter of copper plate/sheet and strip. What caused the change in market structure? The following is a detailed analysis.
From the import structure perspective, although China's copper plate/sheet and strip imports increased, the import volume of copper and brass plate/sheet and strip remained stable YoY or even slightly reduced. The basic use of general-purpose strips has been fully replaced by domestic products, and the growth mainly comes from high-end copper-tin alloy, copper-nickel-silicon alloy strips, or special coated and special-sized copper strips. In recent years, with the increasing concentration of China's copper plate/sheet and strip industry and the trend of product differentiation becoming more apparent, coupled with the new energy industry's impact on the end-use copper structure, the import structure of copper plate/sheet and strip has undergone significant changes.
From the export perspective, China's copper plate/sheet and strip export volume increased significantly in 2024. Driven by the growth of the AI and semiconductor industries, the overseas demand for copper strips used in integrated circuits increased, with a notable increase in the export of copper strips. Additionally, due to the continued sluggish performance of the domestic real estate market, the phenomenon of "more copper used, less brass adopted" persisted. Excess brass strip capacity began to be released to Southeast Asia. Due to the domestic processing fees falling back to the benchmark line and the long-term opening of the export price ratio window, China's copper plate/sheet and strip market exports are expected to continue expanding in the future.
