Global copper market surplus narrows to 150,000 tn in Jan-Feb - study group
This story was originally published at 21:16 IST on 23 April 2025
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MUMBAI – The surplus in the global refined copper market narrowed to 150,000 tonnes in the first two months of 2025, from a surplus of 157,000 tonnes in the corresponding period last year. Global refined copper production rose nearly 1% on year to 4.6 million tonnes in Jan-Feb, while consumption rose 1.1% on year to 4.4 million tonnes.
The growth in refined copper production was constrained as overall output in Chile fell by 18%. Production in China and the Democratic Republic of Congo is estimated to have increased by about 2%, the report said. The two countries account for around 54% of the world's total production. Refined copper output in Asia, excluding China, rose by about 6% mainly due to higher production in India, it said. Global secondary production from scrap rose by 3% to 777,000 tonnes in Jan-Feb.
Demand for copper from all countries, excluding China, is estimated to have risen by 0.5% as weak demand in the European Union, Japan, and the US offset the growth in demand from a number of Asian, West Asian, and North African countries. Demand from China is estimated to have risen by around 1.6%, the study group said.
The average global copper mine capacity in Jan-Feb was 4.7 million tonnes, against 4.6 million tonnes a year ago. Mine utilisation rate fell to 79.4% from 79.7% a year ago, the group said.
Copper stocks held at major exchanges rose to 537,043 tonnes at the end of March, up 25% from the end of December 2024, the group said.
On the London Metal Exchange, the average cash price rose 4.3% to $9,731.67 per tonne in March from $9,329.25 per tonne in February. At 2008 IST, the most active three-month copper contract on the LME was at $9,410 per tonne, up 0.4% from the previous close. End
US$1 = INR 85.42
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Reported by Ashutosh Pati
Edited by Deepshikha Bhardwaj
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