Throughput of Copper Scrap in East China Metal Market Rose Strongly amid the Slower Rebound of SHFE copper

SHANGHAI, Aug 9 (SMM) - From August 1, 2022, to August 7, the throughput of copper scrap in the East China Nonferrous Metals Market was 12,600 mt, up 51.60% WoW. According to the SMM data (July 25-July 29), the weekly average price of  #1 copper cathode was 60,306 yuan/mt up 1,356 yuan/mt or 2.30% from the previous week, and that of bare bright copper in the Linyi Metal Market stood at 56,240 yuan/mt, up 2,250 yuan/mt or 4.17% WoW. The average spread between the copper cathode and copper scrap stood at 395 yuan/mt, sharply narrowed by 728 yuan/mt from the previous week.
From August 1 to August 5, SHFE copper rebounded slower, and the cargo holders were more willing to ship. However, prices of bare bright copper, copper wire scrap and other standard products stood firm amid the insufficient supply, sharply narrowing the spread between the copper cathode and copper scrap. On the demand side, the difficulty in purchasing raw materials kept the operating rates of secondary copper rod producers at low levels, while the terminal demand was improving, resulting in the rising finished product prices. According to the SMM data, as of August 5, premiums of secondary copper rods in Jiangxi were 490 yuan/mt over the SHFE 2208 copper contract, and those of power rods in east China were 790 yuan/mt. Secondary copper rods with lower cost efficiency cannot easily replace the copper cathode rods.
From August 8 to August 14, the copper scrap market will see a short-term supply deficit as copper scrap traders get low inventory in their hands while the downstream demand for copper scrap is booming. If copper prices continue to rebound, the price increase in copper scrap is still expected to surpass that in SHFE copper. Copper scrap traders will be active in shipping amid the considerable profits, and the weekly throughput of copper scrap in the East China Nonferrous Metals Market (August 8- August 14) will maintain over 10,000 mt. On the demand side, in the short term, it is difficult to solve the problem of raw material procurement of secondary copper rod producers, and the operating rates will remain low, hence its replacement to copper cathode rods cannot improve.