SMM May 11 News:
Data Brief: As of Monday, May 11, SMM copper inventories across major regions nationwide decreased by 10,300 mt WoW from the post-holiday level to 242,600 mt, up 119,500 mt compared to the same period last year (123,100 mt).
Specifically, Shanghai saw a rebound in imported copper arrivals, but domestic supply remained tight. Combined with steady downstream rigid demand release, regional inventory continued destocking. Jiangsu maintained stable domestic arrivals with normal warehouse withdrawal pace, and inventory continued to pull back. Guangdong saw balanced warehouse inflows and withdrawals, with limited overall inventory fluctuations.
Market outlook: Supply side, short-term imported copper arrivals are expected to see limited increase, domestic supply remains constrained, and the overall tight supply pattern is unlikely to change in the near term. Demand side, copper price center is steadily shifting upward, downstream enterprises show weak stockpiling willingness, mostly restocking on an as-needed basis. Survey showed that copper cathode rod operating rate this week is expected to recover to 63.65%, up 3.07 percentage points WoW. Overall supply and demand performance suggests the current copper market features tight supply and demand recovering to normal levels, with social inventory expected to continue destocking in the near term.
