Continuous Destocking of China's Copper Social Inventory on the Eve of the Dragon Boat Festival [SMM Weekly Data]

Published: Jun 18, 2026 13:57

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SMM June 18 News:

Data Brief: As of Thursday, June 18, SMM's national mainstream copper inventories fell by 23,500 mt WoW to 194,300 mt, while total inventories increased by 48,400 mt compared to the 144,800 mt in the same period last year.

Specifically, arrivals of imported and domestic copper remained persistently low, sustaining the destocking trend. In Jiangsu, limited supply arrivals combined with faster downstream warehouse withdrawals drove inventory declines. In Guangdong, weak end-user stockpiling sentiment ahead of the Dragon Boat Festival led to a slight inventory buildup in the region.

Looking ahead, on the supply side, arrivals of imported and domestic copper are expected to remain tight in the near term. On the demand side, as the Dragon Boat Festival approaches, downstream enterprises show subdued stockpiling sentiment, with overall consumption remaining weak. The current spot market is characterized by tight supply and weak demand. It is expected that national copper social inventories will continue destocking next week.

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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