SMM Copper Market Daily Review (2014-5-30)

SHANGHAI, Jun 3 (SMM) – The most active SHFE copper contract dipped to a low RMB 48,370/mt after starting lower at RMB 48,400/mt during Thursday’s night session, and ended down RMB 250/mt at RMB 48,470/mt. During the night session, traded volumes for the most active contract remained unchanged at around 100,000 lots, while positions lost 2,504 lots. On Friday, SHFE copper prices initially hovered around RMB 48,500/mt, and then sank to RMB 48,270/mt. The metal bounced back at the tail of the trading due to some buying support, and closed down RMB 80/mt, or 0.16%, at RMB 48,640/mt on Friday. Traded volumes for the SHFE 1408 copper contract gained 88,436 lots, while positions lost 11,038 lots. Traded volumes for the SHFE 1407 copper contract added 20,632 lots, and positions shed 21,902 lots. Traded volumes for the SHFE 1409 copper contract increased 30,080 lots, while positions expanded 10,332 lots.

In the Shanghai physical market, copper was offered Friday at a RMB 200-340/mt premium over the SHFE front-month copper contract. Traded prices were RMB 49,570-49,670/mt for standard-quality copper and RMB 49,670-49,770/mt for high-quality copper. SHFE copper prices extended losses in the last trading day in May, and imported copper brands continued to dominate the physical market, which put a dent in copper premiums. A RMB 150/mt fall in SHFE copper prices later prompted downstream producers to buy the dips, with brisker trading activity, while middlemen also entered the market to purchase goods. As SHFE copper prices stabilized during the afternoon trading session, most industry insiders stayed out of the market, causing copper supply to fall sharply, with standard-quality copper barely found in the market. Copper was largely quoted at a RMB 260-350/mt premium and traded slightly higher in the RMB 49,670-49,800/mt range. SHFE copper inventories decreased 705 mt to 91,947 mt.