On the delivery day, copper prices pulled back, yet the boost to downstream demand was limited [SMM North China Spot Copper]

Published: Jan 15, 2026 11:31

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In North China today, spot prices of #1 copper cathode against the front-month contract were at a discount of 300-100 yuan/mt, with an average discount of 200 yuan/mt, up 120 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. Transaction prices ranged from 101,800 to 102,580 yuan/mt, with an average of 102,190 yuan/mt, down 1,265 yuan/mt from the previous trading day.

SMM Jan. 15:

In North China today, spot prices of #1 copper cathode against the front-month contract were at a discount of 300-100 yuan/mt, with the average discount at 200 yuan/mt, up 120 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. Transaction prices were 101,800-102,580 yuan/mt, and the average price was 102,190 yuan/mt, down 1,265 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. According to the SMM price assessment methodology, prices were quoted against the front-month contract today. On the delivery day, the market generally quoted against the next-month contract at a discount below 300 yuan/mt. Although copper prices pulled back, downstream demand saw very limited improvement. In North China today, the procurement sentiment for copper cathode was 1.25, up 0.12 from the previous trading day, while the sales sentiment was 1.42, down 0.02 from the previous trading day ().

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