Demand Slowed at Week's End, Spot Premiums Held Steady [SMM North China Spot Copper]

Published: Mar 13, 2026 11:33

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Spot #1 copper cathode in North China was quoted at parity to a premium of 80 yuan/mt against the front-month contract today, with the average premium unchanged from the previous trading day at 40 yuan/mt, and the average transaction price down 155 yuan/mt from the previous trading day to 100,470 yuan/mt.

SMM, March 13:

Today, spot #1 copper cathode in North China was quoted at parity to a premium of 80 yuan/mt against the front-month contract, with the average premium unchanged from the previous trading day at 40 yuan/mt. The average transaction price was 100,470 yuan/mt, down 155 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. Following heavy restocking by downstream buyers earlier this week, procurement demand slowed somewhat toward the weekend, and market activity cooled. Today, the copper cathode procurement sentiment index in North China was 2.86, up 0.01 from the previous trading day, while the shipments sentiment index was 1.56, up 0.05 from the previous trading day ().

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