SHANGHAI, Jun. 7 (SMM) - China’s copper cathode production was 625,000 tonnes in May 2017, a drop of 3.55% on a yearly basis, according to SMM survey. Total copper cathode production in the first five months of the year was 3.179 million tonnes, up 0.59% year-on-year.
Some Chinese copper producers undertook maintenance in May, including Jinlong Copper Co., Yanggu Xiangguang Copper Co., Yunnan Tin Group, Zhongtiaoshan Non-ferrous Metals Group’s Yuanqu smelter, Yunnan Copper, Baiyin Nonferrous Metals Group Co., Xinjiang Wuxin Copper Industry Co. and Jinchuan's Fangchenggang copper smelter. In the meantime, some copper smelters’ output was affected by insufficient anode copper supply.
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About 210,000 tonnes of copper production was affected by maintenance so far in 2017, which was equivalent to the amount affected in 2016 by maintenance, according to SMM data.
Most copper smelters will return to production after maintenance. So, domestic copper cathode output will stage a noticeable increase in June, SMM said.
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China’s copper cathode output is expected to add 1.85% year-on-year to 659,000 tonnes in June, SMM predicts. And total output during January-June will increase 0.8% on a yearly basis to 3.838 million tonnes.
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