[SMM Shanghai Spot Copper] Looking ahead to next week, the SHFE copper spot market is expected to remain under pressure. Although intraday copper prices have pulled back from their historical highs, prices remain elevated, which will continue to suppress actual downstream procurement demand and make it difficult to provide effective support for spot cargoes. In terms of market structure, the import arbitrage window is fluctuating around the break-even point. If it remains open, it will introduce overseas supply, increasing domestic supply pressure. Meanwhile, although the inter-month Contango price spread has narrowed slightly, suppliers still have a strong willingness to ship to delivery warehouses, which will continue to divert available spot cargoes. If copper prices fail to decline further next week to effectively stimulate buying interest, the market will likely continue its pattern of "high prices, weak turnover.

In North China today, spot prices of #1 copper cathode against the front-month contract were at a discount of 500-380 yuan/mt, with an average discount of 440 yuan/mt, up 10 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. Transaction prices ranged from 102,420-105,820 yuan/mt, with an average price of 104,120 yuan/mt, up 215 yuan/mt from the previous trading day.

SMM Morning Meeting Minutes: LME copper opened at $13,945/mt overnight, fluctuated upward initially and touched a high of $14,527.5/mt, then the center of copper prices moved straight down to probe $13,400/mt, before fluctuating upward again and finally closing at $13,705/mt, up 4.46%, with trading volume reaching 75,200 lots and open interest reaching 331,000 lots, an increase of 1,322 lots from the previous trading day, overall showing an increase in bulls' positions. The most-traded SHFE copper contract 2603 opened at 110,310 yuan/mt overnight, fluctuated upward initially and touched a high of 114,160 yuan/mt, then the center of copper prices gradually moved down to probe 104,550 yuan/mt, before fluctuating upward again and finally closing at 106,900 yuan/mt, up 0.2%, with trading volume reaching 497,800 lots and open interest reaching 235,000 lots, a decrease of 8,326 lots from the previous trading day, overall showing a decrease in bulls' positions.