Despite 19 Consecutive Days of Inventory Decline, Copper Prices Rose as Downstream Consumption Weakened [SMM South China Spot Copper]

Published: Apr 13, 2026 12:02

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SMM April 13 News:

Today in Guangdong, spot #1 copper cathode against the front-month contract: high-quality copper was quoted at a premium of 200 yuan/mt, unchanged from the previous trading day; standard-quality copper was quoted at a premium of 130 yuan/mt, unchanged from the previous trading day; SX-EW copper was quoted at a premium of 70 yuan/mt, unchanged from the previous trading day. The average price of Guangdong #1 copper cathode was 98,930 yuan/mt, up 525 yuan/mt from the previous trading day, and the average price of SX-EW copper was 98,835 yuan/mt, up 525 yuan/mt from the previous trading day.

Spot market: Guangdong inventory continued to decline for 19 consecutive trading days, falling below the 30,000 mt mark and hitting a new low for the year. As copper prices continued to rise, downstream buyers showed lukewarm interest in restocking, making it difficult for suppliers to hold prices firm on shipments. Quotes today merely held at last Friday's levels, with overall trading activity remaining subdued. Today, the procurement sentiment for copper cathode in Guangdong was 2.24, down 0.06 from the previous trading day, and the shipment sentiment was 3.68, up 0.04 from the previous trading day (historical data can be accessed via the database).

Overall, despite 19 consecutive days of inventory decline, copper prices rose while downstream consumption weakened, and overall trading activity remained subdued.

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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