SHANGHAI, Jun. 25 (SMM) – Shanghai Futures Exchange announced copper stocks in its approved warehouses fell by 9,625 tonnes to 125,191 tonnes in the week ending June 19, down for a 11th straight week. What has been the major driver behind the continuous inventory falls?

“Supplies from copper smelters declined after many of them entered maintenance cycles, and imports were also limited, both factors were behind the inventory falls,” analyst of Everbright Futures told SMM in a recent interview.

“We could see that the oversupply in copper market has eased some, particularly in this El Nino year,” said analyst of Zhaojin Futures. “The decreasing inventories were also a reflection that consumption picked up some,” the analyst added.

At the same time, Guangdong’s copper inventories were also down, according to a report on enanchu.com.

The report noted that daily number of goods shipped into Guangdong’s warehouses dropped 21.42% on the month as of June 18, while trades in local market improved noticeably.

However, some warned that June’s copper consumption may decline due to tighter money supply, and this will weigh on spot copper premiums.