The operating rate of copper wire and cable recovered WoW this week, while off-season constraints affect the sustainability of subsequent orders [SMM Wire and Cable Market Weekly Review]

[Shanghai Spot Copper, SMM] Looking ahead to next week, Russian copper that previously arrived at ports has largely been absorbed by the market, and the concentrated impact of earlier import cargoes on the spot market has somewhat eased. However, according to SMM, affected by factors such as port delays, some non-registered copper is expected to arrive at ports gradually early next week, which may lead to a phased increase in available market supply, exerting certain pressure on spot premiums. On the demand side, downstream buyers still mainly buy the dip and restock based on immediate needs. Although intraday purchasing sentiment continued to rebound, transactions of standard-quality copper only materialized after offers were lowered from around 300 yuan/mt premium early in the session to a premium of 180-210 yuan/mt, reflecting that downstream acceptance of current copper prices and relatively high premiums remains limited. Meanwhile, high-quality copper and registered SX-EW copper cargoes are relatively scarce, and brand price spreads are expected to persist. Overall, under the combined effects of non-registered copper arrivals supplementing supply, downstream push for lower prices, and high copper prices curbing rush-to-buy demand, Shanghai spot copper prices against the SHFE copper 2609 contract are expected to maintain a premium next week, but the overall center of gravity may continue to be in the doldrums. If copper prices pull back significantly, the release of dip-buying demand may provide some support for the lower end of premiums.