Copper Prices Rose, Suppliers Lowered Premiums for Shipments, Overall Trading Was Moderate [SMM South China Spot Copper]

Published: May 6, 2026 13:08

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SMM May 6 update:

Guangdong #1 copper cathode spot prices against the front-month contract today: high-quality copper was quoted at a premium of 270 yuan/mt, down 40 yuan/mt from the previous trading day; standard-quality copper was quoted at a premium of 180 yuan/mt, down 50 yuan/mt from yesterday; SX-EW copper was quoted at a premium of 120 yuan/mt, down 50 yuan/mt from yesterday. The average price of Guangdong #1 copper cathode was 102,550 yuan/mt, up 975 yuan/mt from the previous trading day; the average price of SX-EW copper was 102,445 yuan/mt, up 970 yuan/mt from the previous trading day.

Spot market: After the holiday, Guangdong inventory continued to increase and had risen for 3 consecutive days, mainly due to weak downstream consumption. Hit by both rising inventory and higher copper prices, downstream restocking enthusiasm was lukewarm, and suppliers had to lower premiums to facilitate shipments. Standard-quality copper quotes continued to decline, with early-session quotes at 200 yuan/mt before being lowered to 160 yuan/mt. Guangdong copper cathode procurement sentiment today was 2.32, up 0.12 from the previous trading day, while shipments sentiment was 3.21, down 0.24 from the previous trading day (historical data available via the database).

Overall, copper prices rose while suppliers lowered premiums to facilitate shipments, and trading activity was moderate.

Data Source Statement: Except for publicly available information, all other data are processed by SMM based on publicly available information, market communication, and relying on SMM‘s internal database model. They are for reference only and do not constitute decision-making recommendations.

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