Operations at Chinese manufacturers of flat-rolled copper products slowed in April, as backlogged orders had been fulfilled and as the COVID-19 lockdown restrictions dealt a blow to the demand that have already been weak.

Guangxi Tianyuan New Energy Material has put its 10,000 mt/year lithium carbonate production line into operation, SMM learned.

Southwest China’s Sichuan province lowered electricity tariffs to the normal season mode on Saturday. There were barely any silicon producers in the region stepping up production, SMM research found, due to weak silicon prices and limited power supply caused by continued drought.

China’s copper cathode output in March increased even as secondary copper production continued to contract due to the unfavourable price spread between copper cathode and copper scrap, in addition to copper scrap supply issues. The global outbreak of COVID-19 took a toll on copper scrap supply from Malaysia.

SHFE nonferrous metals, except for tin and nickel, traded lower on Monday, giving up the rebound from last Friday as investors remained cautious about the economic toll of the COVID-19 pandemic. 

JFE, Japan’s second biggest steelmaker, said on Friday that it will close a blast furnace and other facilities at the East Japan Works (Keihin) to optimise its domestic operations. Those facilities are expected to be shut down by FY2023 (ending March 2024), bringing the company’s operating blast furnaces in Japan to seven and reducing its crude steel capacity by around 4 million mt or 13%.

London and Shanghai base metals cruised broadly higher in early morning trade on Friday, as a series of stimulus steps around the world, including a gigantic US package, calmed a panic over a global recession following the coronavirus outbreak.

SHFE nonferrous metals declined across the board on Monday, giving up gains from last Friday, as uncertainties around the economic impact of the fast-spreading coronavirus outbreak continued to depress investors’ sentiment.

Social inventories of primary aluminium ingots across eight consumption areas in China, including SHFE warrants, increased 17,000 mt from last Thursday March 19 to 1.664 million mt as of Monday March 23, according to SMM data.

SHFE nonferrous metals went higher across the board on Friday, recovering from the heavy losses in the prior two sessions, as investors hoped that more stimulus from governments and central banks will shield the world economy from the rapid spread of the coronavirus. Zinc led the increases with a rise of 4.22%. Copper advanced 2.45%, aluminum gained 0.46%, lead added 3.38%, tin increased 3.31%, and nickel expanded 2.95%.