China 2021 copper imports slip after previous year’s record high

China 2021 copper imports slip after previous year’s record high

Reported by Emily Chow and Edited by Kim Coghill from www.mining.com

China’s imports of unwrought copper and copper products slipped in 2021 from the previous year’s record, though imports of copper concentrate hit a historic high.

Imports of unwrought copper and copper products for the year totalled 5.53 million tonnes, General Administration of Customs data showed on Friday, down 17.2% from 2020’s record volume of 6.68 million tonnes.

On a monthly basis, China’s copper imports rose for a fourth straight month in December to 589,165 tonnes, up from November’s 510,402 tonnes and its highest monthly level since October 2020 as a favourable price arbitrage window made bringing in overseas metal more attractive, said an analyst.

“In December, it was more favourable to import into China,”said CRU Chinese copper analyst He Tianyu.

“However, on an annual basis, copper imports into China fell from 2020 as demand from overseas markets like Europe and the US was good, so there were more copper inflows there versus China.”

Customs data also showed that imports of copper concentrate, or partially processed ore, hit a record 23.4 million tonnes in 2021, up 7.6% from the 21.78 million tonnes imported in 2020.

Concentrate imports were at 2.06 million tonnes in December, down from 2.19 million tonnes in November.