Operating Rates of Copper Rod Plants Using Copper Cathode Hit Three-Year High in March

Operating rates at copper rod producers using copper cathode as raw material rose 12.54 percentage points on the month and 7.61 percentage points on the year to 73.77% in March, according to SMM survey of 52 producers with a total capacity of 12.73 million mt/year. The average operating rate of large, medium-sized and small enterprises was 76.28%, 69.93% and 69.21% respectively.

The operating rates topped expectations in March and hit a three-year high (2020-2022). According to the survey, the operating rates rebounded sharply due to two reasons: 1. Demand for copper rod from downstream wire and cable as well as enamelled wire industries grew amid the traditional high season. 2. Copper prices fell sharply in mid-March, attracting downstream buyers to place a large number of orders.  However, the average operating rate still stood below pre-Covid-19 pandemic levels (2018, 2019), which suggests that the end-user consumption only picked up slightly.