China's Imports of Copper Concentrate from Some American Countries Declined in December 2022

Published: Jan 31, 2023 10:52

Source: SMM

Save

In December 2022, China imported 2.103 million mt of copper ore and its concentrate, an increase of 2.09% year-on-year.

SHANGHAI, Jan 31 — In December 2022, China imported 2.103 million mt of copper ore and its concentrate, an increase of 2.09% year-on-year. From January to December 2022, China imported 25.318 million mt of copper ore and its concentrate, a cumulative increase of 8.07% year-on-year. The volume began to fall from a high level after hitting a monthly high in November 2022. China's copper concentrate imports from some American countries (Peru, the United States and Panama) reached 635,000 mt, a decrease of 16.6% from the previous month, and a month-on-month reduction of 126,600 mt.

SMM had predicted that the amount of copper concentrate shipped to China from the Americas could hardly remain as high as that in November 2022. From November to December 2022, the production and shipping of some countries in South America were affected by some industrial accidents. That, combined with the ending of stockpiling by Chinese smelters for the production in winter directly led to the month-on-month decline in copper concentrate imports in December 2022.

According to foreign media reports, starting from December 2022, due to dissatisfaction with the removal and arrest of former Peruvian President Pedro Castillo by the Congress, fierce protests broke out in Peru to put pressure on the new government and entered a state of emergency. Political protests affected Peru’s mine production and port transportation, road logistics and other aspects of Peruvian society.
It is reported that the Las Bambas and Antapaccay copper mines in Peru have been hit by political protests, resulting in blockages of delivery. The road via which MMG's Las Bambas mine delivers its ore was blocked, and the waterworks and staff dormitories of Glencore's Antapaccay copper mine were damaged. Copper mine production efficiency was reduced. In addition, two trucks on the shared section of the ore transportation road of Las Bambas and Antapaccay mines were burned by demonstrators, which directly blocked ore shipments.
From November to December 2022, a series of large-scale truck driver strikes and protests took place in major ports in the United States. The large-scale strike of truck drivers in Oakland, California has basically stopped ground transportation operations at the third largest port in California, and the strikes of truck drivers at the ports of Los Angeles and Long Beach in the United States have caused traffic paralysis and congestion at the terminals. The suspension of logistics and transportation in the United States has to a certain extent caused a sharp decrease in the amount of copper concentrate exported from the United States to China in December 2022, with a month-on-month decline of 85,000 mt.
The stockpiling for the production in winter by Chinese smelters came to an end, and arriving shipments of raw materials scheduled to arrive in December fell short of those in November.

Import/Export

Data Source Statement: Except for publicly available information, all other data are processed by SMM based on publicly available information, market communication, and relying on SMM‘s internal database model. They are for reference only and do not constitute decision-making recommendations.

For any inquiries or to learn more information, please contact: lemonzhao@smm.cn

For more information on how to access our research reports, please contact:service.en@smm.cn

Related News

Feb 6, 2026 23:56

"Premier Li Qiang Leads State Council Meeting on Enhancing Effective Investment, Boosting Economic Growth"

Premier Li Qiang presided over an executive meeting of the State Council to study policy measures for promoting effective investment. The meeting noted that promoting effective investment plays an important role in stabilizing economic growth and strengthening momentum for development. It is necessary to innovate and improve policy measures, and intensify efforts to enhance the efficiency of utilizing funds such as central budget investments, ultra-long-term special treasury bonds, local government special bonds, and new-type policy-based financial instruments. In conjunction with formulating and implementing the 15th Five-Year Plan

Feb 6, 2026 23:56

Feb 6, 2026 23:54

"Guided by Xi Jinping Thought, Implement 20th CPC Congress Spirit, Apply New Development Philosophy...

Guided by Xi Jinping Thought on Socialism with Chinese Characteristics for a New Era, we will thoroughly implement the spirit of the 20th National Congress of the Communist Party of China and the plenary sessions of the Party’s 20th Central Committee, fully and faithfully apply the new development philosophy, strengthen top-level design, build computing power interconnection nodes oriented toward national hub periods, major strategic regions, and key industries, establish a system of computing power interconnection nodes, improve the efficiency and service level of public computing power resources, and promote high-quality development of computing power.

Feb 6, 2026 23:54

Feb 6, 2026 23:47

Indirect Iran-US Nuclear Talks in Muscat Show Progress, Omani FM Mediates Tense but Efficient Discussions

After intensive indirect consultations, the new round of nuclear talks between Iran and the US in Muscat, the capital of Oman, has achieved phased progress. It is reported that during this round of talks, the Iranian and US delegations did not meet directly. Instead, Omani Foreign Minister Badr acted as an intermediary, conveying a series of core proposals, strategic concerns, and policy positions to the other side. The atmosphere at the talks was tense yet efficient. According to preliminary on-site assessments, although both sides continue to negotiate over specific terms, they have reached a consensus on the key objective of "continuing dialogue."

Feb 6, 2026 23:47