This week (2.21-2.27), the operating rate of SMM copper wire and cable enterprises was 64.32%, down 5.76 percentage points MoM, significantly lower than the expected operating rate by 14.06 percentage points and 9.24 percentage points lower than the same period last year on the lunar calendar. The unexpected decline in the operating rate of the copper wire and cable market was mainly due to new orders falling short of expectations, with many enterprises reporting a MoM decrease in new orders this week. Therefore, during the post-holiday demand recovery phase, the operating rate of copper wire and cable enterprises failed to rise. Currently, high copper prices are the main factor deterring customers from placing orders. It is understood that most downstream customers' psychological price level is around 75,000 yuan/mt. By industry segment, there is almost no new demand for medium- and low-voltage orders, and recent order volumes from the State Grid Corporation of China and China Southern Power Grid are also limited. Only high-end orders for high voltage and above performed well, while PV and submarine cable orders remained relatively stable. Additionally, export orders performed strongly, mainly destined for Southeast Asia and the Middle East. At present, the uncertainty of copper prices remains high, and terminal customers are mostly adopting a cautious attitude. Wire and cable enterprises have not shown much optimism in predicting next week's operating rate. SMM expects that next week (2.28-3.6), the operating rate of copper wire and cable enterprises will rise by 8.75 percentage points MoM to 73.08%, but it will still be difficult to return to the normal level for enterprises.
