Copper Inventory across Major Chinese Markets Adds 600 mt over Weekend

SHANGHAI, Nov 28 (SMM) - As of Monday November 28, SMM copper inventory across major Chinese markets stood at 114,000 mt, up 600 mt from last Friday and 24,600 mt from the same period last year when the data was 89,400 mt. Recently, the inventories have decreased after soaring. The market shall pay attention to whether the inventory will rise again. The inventory in most areas of China decreased except that in Guangdong. In detail, the inventory in Shanghai fell 5,200 mt to 71,900 mt, the inventory in Guangdong added 6,000 mt to 15,500 mt, the inventory in Jiangsu dipped 100 mt to 22,300 mt and the inventory in Tianjin dropped 100 mt to 2,700 mt.

Inventories in east China decreased. Customs clearance volume of imported copper was low, and some goods were transferred to south China. Besides, COVID-19 outbreaks across the country reduced the smelters’ shipment efficiency. Higher inventory in Guangdong was contributed by the following reasons. Arrivals of domestic copper grew while the consumption was poor. In addition, due to the high premiums and the end-of-month factor, some downstream enterprises intended to suspend their production, which can also be reflected in the recent continuous decline in the average daily shipment flowing out of the warehouses in Guangdong.

Looking forward to the market outlook, smelters will increase their shipments to alleviate their pressure this week. The amount of imported copper is not expected to grow significantly. However, the downstream purchases will decline at the end of the month, and the spread of COVID-19 will also have a certain impact on consumption. SMM believes that the inventory this week may rise slightly owing to the growing supply but shrinking consumption.