Chile's Copper Output Drops 13.8% in April, Metal Production Also Falls

Codelco, one of the world's largest copper producers, released its earnings report on Friday. Benefiting from stronger copper prices, the company's pre-tax profit reached $825 million in Q1 2026, nearly tripling compared to the same period last year when it stood at $213 million. Codelco stated that the company's total copper production from January to March was 272,000 mt, down 8% compared to the same period last year.Codelco reported its Q1 2026 results. Market conditions for copper and various by-products improved during the quarter, but the company's own production declined.From January to March, the company's own copper mine production reached 272,000 mt of concentrates, down 8.1% compared to the same period in 2025.

Commerzbank expects copper prices to rise to $14,250 per mt by mid-2027.

In May, copper prices surged before retracing, yet copper scrap payability coefficients remained exceptionally firm. Transactions for Millberry stabilized at a high level of 98.5%, while No. 2 copper became the market highlight, with its coefficient climbing from around 95% to 96%–97% due to the premium upside of its gold and silver by-products. Driven by stricter domestic policies and tax compliance, China demand remained robust. Conversely, tight overseas scrap supply persisted, and this structural mismatch kept import payability coefficients elevated and sticky for the short term. Under the current landscape of tight global supply and resilient demand, the traditional market logic of "surging copper prices driving down payability coefficients" has effectively become obsolete.