SHANGHAI, Apr 21 (SMM) – According to SMM survey, the operating rates of copper pipe enterprises are estimated at 91.65% in April, an increase of 1.36 percentage points MoM, and up 13.56 percentage points YoY.
In April, air-conditioning companies continued to stock up on copper pipes aggressively for subsequent production. During the same period last year, affected by the Covid-19-driven lockdown in Shanghai, factories around Jiangsu, Zhejiang and Shanghai faced obstacles to raw material procurement and transportation.
The operating rates of copper pipe producers were less than 80%. Considering the low base, the year-on-year increase in this April should be considerable. The inventory of finished products at air-conditioner factories has increased, and some copper pipe factories have concerns about the increase in orders after May. Subsequent orders for copper pipes may face pressure.
