Most steelmakers in China continued to maintain full operations and the impact of maintenance on output will further reduce from a month ago in June, driven by existing profits of rebar.

Tangshan Fengnan Zongheng steel plant plans to put its 1780mm rolling lines into maintenance for 13 days from May 10, and this could impact hot-rolled coil output by 195,000 mt during the period, according to sources. 

Transactions of spot copper cathode in Shanghai improved on the morning of Wednesday April 22 as downstream consumers stepped up purchases following two straight days of declines in copper futures amid crude market turmoil. 

While prices of the material will continue to see some upsides potential in April, the pessimistic outlook for downstream demand at home and abroad under the cloud of the coronavirus will depress upward momentum of battery-grade nickel sulphate prices in the month ahead.

East China's Jiangsu province will accelerate its investment in new infrastructure projects in 2020, a move aimed at expanding information consumption and supporting the development of 5G networks, local authorities said in a press conference on April 15. 

However, concerns about supply shortage sustain due to the disruptions to global copper scrap supply chain amid the coronavirus epidemic. Allowances in the first five batches this year amounted to 527,700 mt, which translate to 422,100 mt in Cu content based on an average grade of 80%.

A copper smelter in south-west China has put its facilities into month-long maintenance as scheduled, sources told SMM. 

Tangsteel, a subsidiary of China's biggest steelmaker Hebei Iron and Steel Group (HBIS Group), planned to put its 1# galvanising lines into maintenance for three days from April 1, sources told SMM.

Transactions of spot copper in Shanghai were stagnant on the morning of Thursday March 19 as financial market volatility and worries about the crippling impact of the coronavirus kept consumers on the sidelines. 

The higher profits, however, have not prompted steelmakers to shift their molten iron to produce rebar at the expense of HRC, given current greater inventory pressure of rebar and uncertainties around the strength of the price rally. As of March 17, the profit gap has expanded to 126 yuan/mt, up from 10-30 yuan/mt in early March, with the national average prices of rebar rising over 100 yuan/mt in the month to March 17.