China's major copper cathode rod enterprises posted an operating rate of 61.2% this week (August 14-August 20), up 1.89 percentage points MoM and 2.19 percentage points above expectations, but down 11.3 percentage points YoY. Copper prices consolidated sharply this week, and during the rapid pullback phase, downstream demand repressed by high prices was released collectively, leading to a significant rebound in new orders for copper cathode rod enterprises, directly driving the operating rate higher. End-use industries such as cables and enamelled wire were also stimulated by the copper price pullback, with just-in-demand clients making concentrated procurement; overall demand recovered slightly, providing strong support for copper rod enterprises' operating rates. On the inventory side, during the copper price pullback window, enterprises took the opportunity to restock raw materials as needed, with raw material inventory rising 1.36 percentage points MoM; meanwhile, downstream actively fixed prices and picked up goods during the copper price pullback, driving finished product inventory down by 1.91 percentage points MoM. Looking ahead to next week (August 21-August 27), after copper prices stabilize, bearish sentiment among downstream players will resurface, and the growth rate of new orders is expected to slow down; additionally, some enterprises that originally planned maintenance this week have postponed their maintenance plans to next week due to the rebound in orders. SMM expects the operating rate of copper cathode rod enterprises to decrease by 1.24 percentage points MoM to 59.96% next week.
