Operating Rate of Copper Wire and Cable Edged Up MoM, Demand Gradually Recovers Amid Industry Divergence [SMM Wire and Cable Market Weekly Review]

      The operating rate of SMM copper wire and cable enterprises this week (November 21-27) was 66.89%, up 1.22 percentage points MoM but down 27.48 percentage points YoY. The industry showed significant divergence this week. Some enterprises benefited from concentrated order releases at month-end, leading to increased production activity. However, affected by the renewed rise in copper prices, downstream customers' price acceptance was insufficient, and orders at some enterprises returned to mediocre levels. Notably, overall orders on hand and production schedules in the industry showed a steady rebound, providing support for production. By sector, orders related to China Southern Power Grid in south China, which had mediocre demand performance earlier, were gradually being fulfilled. Meanwhile, in the construction sector, affected by the transmission of high copper prices, the pace of order releases continued to slow down, providing limited boost to the industry's operating rate in the short term. Inventory side, due to increased month-end repayment pressure and tight capital turnover, coupled with the dual impact of a sharp rise in copper prices, enterprises weakened their purchase willingness to control production costs. The raw material inventory ratio decreased by 1.63 percentage points this week, recorded at 13,580 mt. Meanwhile, with month-end deliveries, finished product inventories decreased by 1.12 percentage points, recorded at 18,490 mt. Looking ahead to next week, as the year enters its final month, some enterprises are rushing production. Based on the current production schedule of orders on hand, the steady rebound is expected to continue in early December. Therefore, SMM expects the operating rate of copper wire and cable enterprises to rebound to 67.95% next week (November 28 - December 4).