Suppliers want to hold prices firm to sell but downstream does not accept, overall trading is quiet [SMM South China spot copper]

SMM July 10:

Today, Guangdong's #1 copper cathode spot against the front-month contract: high-quality copper quoted at a premium of 110 yuan/mt, up 10 yuan/mt from the previous trading day; standard-quality copper quoted at a premium of 50 yuan/mt, up 10 yuan/mt from the previous trading day; SX-EW copper quoted at a discount of 10 yuan/mt, up 20 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. The average price of Guangdong #1 copper cathode was 104,030 yuan/mt, up 1,555 yuan/mt from the previous trading day, and the average price of SX-EW copper was 103,940 yuan/mt, up 1,565 yuan/mt.

Spot market: Guangdong's inventory dropped for the 7th consecutive day, primarily due to persistently low arrivals. With inventories declining steadily, suppliers actively held prices firm and sold. In early trading, standard-quality copper briefly rose to a premium of 60 yuan/mt, but the sharp increase, coupled with a significant rise in copper prices, dampened downstream restocking interest. Suppliers then had to lower premiums again to sell. Today, the purchasing sentiment for copper cathode in Guangdong was 2.4, down 0.06 from the previous trading day, while the shipment sentiment was 2.97, up 0.07 (historical data can be accessed via the database).

Overall, suppliers sought to hold prices firm and sell, but downstream buyers did not accept, resulting in subdued trading activity.