Copper Inventories in Major Domestic Regions Continued to Accumulate Over the Weekend [SMM Weekly Data]

SMM December 29 News:

Data Snapshot: As of Monday, December 29, SMM's national mainstream copper inventories increased 10.95% WoW, with total inventory up 101,700 mt YoY.

By region, Shanghai's copper cathode inventory saw a significant buildup WoW, primarily due to weak downstream demand after copper prices hit new highs, leading to poor warehouse withdrawals. Jiangsu's inventory showed a slight increase, clearly dragged down by sluggish consumption. Guangdong's inventory also rose, as weak local market consumption led to more copper cathode being transferred to warehouses; low daily average warehouse withdrawals further confirmed the weak downstream demand.

Looking ahead, supply side, imported copper arrivals remained low, while domestic supply arrivals stayed normal, resulting in a tight overall supply landscape. Demand side, inhibited by record-high copper prices, downstream purchasing sentiment was weak. According to our survey, the weekly operating rate for copper cathode rod is expected to be 55.28% this week, down 5.45 percentage points WoW and down 11.15 percentage points YoY. Considering both supply and demand, the market is expected to show a pattern of "reduced supply and persistently weak consumption" this week, with weekly inventory likely to continue its buildup trend.