Copper market reduces surplus

The global copper market recorded a surplus of 266 thousand tons in January-October this year, according to the latest report on metal residues published by the World Bureau of Metals Statistics (WBMS). It should be noted that the world copper market recorded a surplus of 298 thousand tons at the end of 2014.

Global mine production from January to October this year was 15.90 million tonnes. Production rose 3.6 percent compared to the corresponding period in 2014, while global refined copper output jumped 1.1 percent year-on-year by 19.1 million tonnes. China's refined copper production reported a significant increase of 36,000 tonnes during this period. In addition, the production of refined copper increased dramatically by 35,000 tons in India in ten months.

Global copper demand in January-October 2015 stood at 18.798 Mt, essentially unchanged from 18.796 Mt in the same period in 2014. Chinese consumption rose marginally by 26,000 tonnes during this period to 9.211 Mt. Chinese demand accounts for nearly 49 percent of global demand. In addition, the EU28 reported a slight decrease in consumption of 1.1 percent compared to the 2014 level.

According to the report, steel stocks increased by 204 thousand tons during the first ten months of 2015 compared to the 2014 closing volume. It should be noted that stocks were even higher in August. However, volumes fell during October. Refined copper production during October amounted to 1984.10 thousand tons, while consumption during the month reached 2006.30 thousand tons.