Copper Plate/Sheet and Strip Market: Operating Rates Improved MoM in November, High Copper Prices Constrained Production Increases in December

According to SMM, the overall operating rate of copper plate/sheet and strip enterprises in November 2025 was 68.39%, up 3.4 percentage points MoM but down 5.16 percentage points YoY. Specifically, the operating rate of large enterprises was 69.98%, medium-sized enterprises 68.90%, and small enterprises 60.16%.

Overall orders in the copper plate/sheet and foil industry showed a recovery trend in November, but have not yet returned to normal peak-season levels. Although copper prices remained at a relatively high level throughout November, downstream customers, having adapted to the market conditions, showed marginal improvement in price acceptance. Additionally, some rigid demand orders had accumulated since October due to high and fluctuating copper prices. In November, when copper prices experienced a phased pullback, falling below 86,000 yuan/mt during a window period, downstream enterprises collectively released their backlogged orders while also replenishing some immediate production needs, directly driving a rebound in the industry's operating rate.

Regarding inventory, the days of finished product inventories for copper plate/sheet and strip enterprises stood at 5.53 days in November, down 0.25 days MoM from October. This slight reduction in inventory levels was primarily due to significantly faster cargo pick-up pace by downstream enterprises amid the concentrated release of rigid demand orders during the month, which improved product circulation efficiency and marginally alleviated inventory pressure in the industry.

As December marks the year-end closing phase, some copper plate/sheet and strip enterprises have formulated production increase plans to meet annual targets. Driven by this, the industry's operating rate is preliminarily expected to rebound by 3.4 percentage points MoM to 70.19%. Looking at end-use demand by segment, demand in the home appliance sector shows signs of marginal recovery, while demand in the new energy and electronics sectors remains stable. However, against the backdrop of high copper prices, substitution demand for aluminum as a substitute for copper has increased, with orders for certain cable shielding strips significantly shrinking, thereby limiting the overall improvement in demand. Meanwhile, copper prices hit new highs again in early December, creating resistance in sales transmission. The current order volume is unlikely to fully support the production growth under enterprises' output increase plans. Consequently, the industry's actual operating rate in December is likely to fall short of the aforementioned expectation.