Olga Magomedova: "The market is used to high results in copper smelting in China"
The "Prime" quotes Olga Magomedova, researcher at the International Best Practices Analysis Department of the Gaidar Institute, as saying that the market is used to high copper smelting in China. According to her, the new record, registered in March, should not trigger a drop in metal prices.
"The previous record for copper smelting was already set by China just last December — in the amount of 1.24 mn tons, so the consistent increase in production causes a moderate market reaction, without price drops. If in March the average cost of copper concentrate reached 79675 yuan ($10890) per ton on the Shanghai Exchange, today we see 78640 yuan per ton ($10750)," Olga Magomedova noted.
The expert also emphasized that China is confidently among the world’s top five copper producers, and the volume of smelting for the first two months of the year increased by 2%, which corresponds to the global average of 2.7%, taking into account the
"Nevertheless, the heightened focus on any changes in the global copper market, including the renewal of output records in China, can be explained by continued expectation of the imposition by the US of import tariffs on copper since March," Olga Magomedova added.
Friday, 25.04.2025