Enamelled Wire Operating Rate Pulls Back as Expected in May

[SMM Brass Billet Flash] In May, the overall operating rate of copper billet enterprises stood at 49.27%, down 2.91 percentage points MoM and 0.65 percentage points YoY. By enterprise size, large enterprises, leveraging advantages in raw material channels and capital, maintained relatively stable production, with an operating rate of 56.01%; medium-sized enterprises were under notable pressure, with the rate dropping to 42.02%; small enterprises were hit by triple shocks—raw material shortages, losses, and insufficient orders—with the operating rate at only 24.96%. The operating rate gap among large, medium, and small enterprises continued to widen, and polarization in the industry intensified.

[SMM Brass Billet Express] End-use demand remains persistently weak, and the market substitution effect is becoming increasingly evident. In the current end-use market, traditional copper billet demand continues to shrink. To control costs and align with market requirements, a growing number of downstream clients are progressively transitioning to substitute materials such as stainless steel and plastics for copper products, directly diverting a significant volume of copper billet orders.

[SMM Brass Billet Flash] In May, recycled brass raw material supply remained tight and prices stayed high. Driven by speculation in the brass scrap market, operations such as copper-zinc separation pushed up brass scrap prices. Coupled with restricted reverse invoicing operations and tight, sought-after imported recycled brass supply, brass billet enterprises saw their raw material procurement channels narrow and procurement costs climb sharply.