[SMM Copper Flash] SMM VP Shirley: No Single Country Controls Copper; Recycled Share ~40%; SMM Opens Zambia Office

Published: Jun 4, 2026 12:21

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At the 2026 SMM Indonesia Critical Minerals Conference, SMM VP Shirley Wang noted that copper differs fundamentally from nickel — no single country controls pricing, and the global supply map continues to shift while most analytical models still rely on last decade's data. Recycled copper now accounts for nearly 40% of global supply, far above nickel's 22%, making secondary supply a key structural variable. To improve data quality, SMM has opened a ground-level office in Zambia to collect first-hand copper mining data rather than relying on satellite-derived estimates.

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