Barclays Expects Copper Prices to Severely Soften in Late 2017

[SMM Shanghai Spot Copper] Looking ahead to next week, on the night of September 10, SHFE copper prices pulled back notably from the previous trading day, erasing all weekly gains. The SHFE copper 2609 contract mainly traded in the range of 109,000–109,700 yuan/mt. As the center of copper prices shifted lower, downstream pricing activity improved significantly. According to SMM, some processing enterprises conducted concentrated pricing during the night session, with overall pricing volume notably higher than the previous trading day. Driven by concentrated pricing, downstream raw material procurement demand was released simultaneously, and inquiries and transactions in the Shanghai spot copper cathode market improved markedly from the previous trading day. In addition, the import window rarely opened, and expectations for subsequent imported copper supply edged up. Next Tuesday is the delivery date for the SHFE copper 2609 contract, and after the contract rollover, spot copper quotes against SHFE copper are expected to remain at a high premium.