SHANGHAI, Jul. 17 (SMM) – National Bureau of Statistics reported China’s refined copper output climbed to a six-month high of 695,121 tonnes in June. SMM considered the production data inflated, but expects July to witness sharp output growth.
“Copper production recovered some smelters, including Zhongtiaoshan Nonferrous Metals and Jinchuan Group, according to our survey, but maintenance of Xiangguang Copper and Tongling Nonferrous continued to affect total yields in June,” SMM copper analyst says.
Moreover, output of some new projects, such as Zhongyuan Gold Smelter under China National Gold Corp and Zhangjiagang United Copper, remained low. SMM learned that the former would not achieve normal production until August, which is obviously later than scheduled.
SMM does see noticeable output growth in July with most large smelters resuming from maintenance cycles. “Notably, those smelters failing to meet production plans in H1 due to maintenance will catch up starting from July,” SMM analyst explains.
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