SHFE Market Movement (2017-11-13）

PT Freeport Indonesia has restarted its Manyar copper smelter and entered a gradual ramp-up phase. President Director Tony Wenas said during a parliamentary hearing on September 15 that, as copper concentrate supply from the Grasberg Block Cave (GBC) mine gradually recovers, concentrate feeding at Manyar resumed in August, followed by the restart of copper cathode production in September. Manyar had been operating at reduced levels after the September 2025 GBC incident sharply disrupted concentrate supply, with limited feedstock prioritized for PT Smelting. Manyar is designed to process around 1.7 million tonnes of copper concentrate per year, with copper cathode capacity of approximately 480,000 tonnes per year, while PT Smelting has expanded cathode capacity of around 342,000 tonnes per year. Manyar's current output remains well below its design capacity, with the pace of the ramp-up largely dependent on upstream concentrate availability. Freeport expects GBC's production rate to recover to around 65% in H2 2026, approximately 80% by mid-2027, and close to normal levels by the end of 2027. As mine production recovers, Manyar is expected to further increase its operating rate in 2027.

Konkola Copper Mines has restarted its Nchanga copper smelter in Zambia and cast the first copper anode following a 106-day shutdown. The outage was used for an extensive rehabilitation and refurbishment programme aimed at improving plant reliability, efficiency and long-term operating performance. The shutdown, which began in early June and was initially expected to last around 60 days, ultimately extended to 106 days, with the rehabilitation programme reportedly involving around US$40 million of investment. The restart restores an important part of Zambia's domestic concentrate-processing capacity after several major smelters underwent extended maintenance during the June–September period. KCM's broader recovery strategy targets copper production of around 300,000 t/y by 2030, supported by mi

SMM Morning Meeting Summary: Overnight, LME copper opened at $14,236/mt, rose to an intraday high of $14,263.5/mt after the open, then consolidated and pulled back to $14,181, before rallying again in late trading to close at $14,250/mt, up 0.96%. Trading volume reached 16,000 lots, and open interest stood at 261,000 lots, down 5,780 lots from the previous trading day, reflecting bear position reductions. Overnight, the most-traded SHFE copper 2610 contract opened at 108,020 yuan/mt, hit an intraday high of 108,170 yuan/mt, then pulled back to an intraday low of 107,770 yuan/mt, and finally closed at 107,960 yuan/mt, up 0.66%. Trading volume reached 19,000 lots, and open interest stood at 163,000 lots, down 2,822 lots from the previous trading day, reflecting bear position reductions.