Main sea freight index at Baltic Exchange rises further to 978 points

[SMM Spot Copper Concentrates] According to market rumors, the tender result of a large mine was released last week, where 60,000 mt of spot copper concentrates were traded through traders at TCs of -$220/dmt to -$225/dmt, far exceeding market expectations.

[SMM Copper Express] Although existing orders on hand provide some support for production, the market is gradually transitioning into the traditional off-season, and downstream wait-and-see sentiment continues to intensify, dragging enterprise operating rates further down. The operating rate for copper cathode rod is expected to continue to pull back in June.

[SMM Shanghai spot copper] Nearing delivery, the inter-month contango spread remains in the 70-10 yuan/mt range. Suppliers are optimistic about near-term premiums, with strong sentiment to hold prices firm and hold back from selling. After standard-quality copper cargoes at a discount of 20 yuan/mt were quickly traded in early business, low-priced cargoes became hard to find in the market. From the demand side, downstream buyers’ acceptance of current premium offers is limited, with overall demand largely need-based and limited willingness to chase higher prices. The discount for non-registered copper remains at 200-180 yuan/mt, indicating that overall consumption support is not strong. On balance, amid the tug-of-war between delivery-logic-backed firm offers and limited downstream acceptance, Shanghai spot copper quotes against the SHFE copper 2606 contract are expected to maintain the current pattern tomorrow, with the center of premiums possibly shifting slightly higher.