SMM October 10 News:
Today, SMM #1 copper cathode spot prices against the current month 2510 contract were quoted at a discount of 60 yuan/mt to a premium of 100 yuan/mt, with the average price quoted at a premium of 20 yuan/mt, up 5 yuan/mt from the previous trading day; the SMM #1 copper cathode price ranged from 86,380 to 86,980 yuan/mt. In early morning trading, SHFE copper gradually declined from 86,700 yuan/mt, briefly touched 86,360 yuan/mt, then rebounded to 86,940 yuan/mt, before giving back some gains after approaching 11 a.m., and settled at 86,230 yuan/mt in the morning session. During the morning trading session, the SHFE copper inter-month price spread fluctuated frequently, moving between a Contango of 60 yuan/mt and a backwardation of 20 yuan/mt.
Intraday trading sentiment improved significantly compared to the previous trading day; as downstream raw material inventories declined approaching the weekend, just-in-time procurement was observed during the day. The procurement sentiment for copper cathode in the Shanghai region was 2.96, while sales sentiment was 3.07. In early trading, supplier quotations showed no difference from yesterday's; as low-priced cargoes were quickly traded, suppliers began to raise their offers. At the start of trading, Tiefeng and Zhongtiaoshan brands in Shanghai and Changzhou areas traded at discounts of 70-50 yuan/mt, after which traders raised their offers to above a discount of 40 yuan/mt, with downstream buying interest moderate. Xiangguang, Lufang, JCC, and others traded at premiums around 40-50 yuan/mt, while high-quality copper traded at premiums of 70-80 yuan/mt.
Looking ahead to next week, with copper prices remaining high, downstream buying is expected to be primarily just-in-time procurement. Approaching the delivery date and being in a Contango structure, spot discounts for SHFE copper are expected to be limited.
