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According to Antaike, Chinese refined copper production in November amounted to 405,257t. For the 11 months to November the figure was 3,778,095t, an increase of 8% y-o-y. Chinese copper semis production in November reached 221,091t; for the year to November copper semis output totalled 2,432,149t, up by 17% compared with the same period in 2008. In addition, the customs office reported that refined copper imports in November increased by 15% m-o-m to 194,388t.

The Japan Copper and Brass Association released an estimate of the total domestic fabrication of copper and copper alloy products in November, which showed that production fell by 10.4% y-o-y to 65,940t. Copper strip production amounted to 18,240t, down by 18% in November and has experienced year-on-year declines for twelve consecutive months. The segment was negatively impacted by weak demand from the semiconductor and electronic industries since autumn 2011. Conversely, brass strip output rose by 3.3% y-o-y to reach 9,895t in November supported by a rebounding automotive sector. Copper tube output in November amounted to 9,895t, down by 20% y-o-y, due to base year effects caused by a rise in production after the hot summer in 2010 (the November level is higher than the same month of 2009). Brass bar output contracted by 5.3% y-o-y in November to reach 14,993t attributed to weak end-use demand from the Japanese construction and electrical sectors, especially in the latter half of this year.

Preliminary Chinese trade data for November showed that imports of unwrought copper totalled 365,331t in November, up 13 5% m-o-m from October; partially driven by seasonal effects from the week-long Chinese October holiday. Year to date imports of unwrought copper reached 4.31Mt, up 20.8% compared to the first 11 months of 2011. Imports of copper scrap totalled 470,000t in November, up 20.5% from October. Year to date imports of copper scrap also showed increases on the precious year, reaching 4.4Mt, a 4.1% increase on January-November 2011.

A recent survey by the Shanghai Metals Market of 21 major Chinese copper tube producers, with a total capacity of 1.24Mt/y, showed that operating rates in November rebounded to 71.12%, up 9 percentage points from October. The survey suggested that the bounce came as a result of weak production in October, rather than a particularly strong November. The commentary released with the survey stated that inventories of air conditioners, a major end use of copper tube, had declined to a historical low of 6.89M units in November. The survey also revealed that producer's inventories of raw materials had fallen in November to 15.7% of production, down 2.28 percentage points from October.

South Korea has experienced a sharp decrease in its entire copper semis range production in November 2008 according to the Korean Nonferrous Metal Association. Copper wirerod totalled 46,007 tonnes, falling by 18% y-o-y. Copper plate and strip plunged by almost 42% y-o-y to 10,744 tonnes. Copper tube also declined by approximately 26% to 9,448 tonnes, while copper and copper alloy bar production fell to 16,191 tonnes, a decline of approximately 8%. Overall, copper semis production in November 2008 dropped by 21.4% y-o-y. For the first eleven months of 2008, copper semis output amounted to 1,097,154 tonnes compared to 1,193,092 tonnes from the same period in 2007, declining by 8%. The economy has been hit by shrinking exports and weakening domestic demand. In response to the downturn, the government announced that it will invest 50 trillion won within the next four years in infrastructure and environment projects.

A recent survey by the Shanghai Metals Market of 20 major Chinese wire and cable producers, with a total capacity of 1.007Mt/y, showed that operating rates in November hit an annual high of 79.37%, up 3.97% m-o-m. The reading showed a strong rebound from October but remains well below levels seen in 2011, when utilisation rates hit a high of 92.10%. The healthiest utilisation rates in the sector were for large producers (> 50,000t/y), whose rate was at 83.31% in November, well above small producers (<20,000t/y), whose reported utilisation rate was just 56.80%. Both large and small producers reported low raw materials stock levels at between 19% and 21% of production.

A survey of 21 major Chinese wirerod producers, with total capacity of 3.67Mt/y, showed that the average operating rate increased to 74.29% in November, up 5.27 percentage points from October. The survey cited an increased demand for wire from the power generation and construction sectors, as well as a roll off of October's seasonal effects as reasons for the increase. The overall level of utilisation in November 2012 was down 12.51 percentage points from a rate of 86.80% in November 2011. The survey also reported that raw materials inventories at Chinese wirerod producers had decreased to 13.98% of production, stating that most producers are not expecting large increases in the copper price, and with tighter cash flows, prefer to hold smaller inventories.

According to data from China Customs, Chinese imports of semi-finished copper products amounted to 51,900t in November, a slight increase from October's 51,000t but down 17.6% y-o-y. Compared to 2011, Chinese January-November semis imports were down 14.7% at 613,400t as the ramp-up in domestic semis production in China reduced the demand for foreign produced semis. China customs also reported that cathode imports rebounded in November to 250,666t, up 8.7% from October.

The Japan Electric Wire and Cable Makers' Association reported that domestic shipments of copper wire and cable in Japan declined by 0.4% in November to reach 60,400t, which represents the second-lowest monthly level in the past 35 years. Demand from carmakers and construction remained firm but orders from electric power companies fell by 17.6% y-o-y to 5,400t in November.

Ouglich, November 20, 2008 - Nexans, the worldwide leader in the cable industry, held a grand opening ceremony on November 20 to mark the official launch of production at its Ouglich plant in Yaroslavl Oblast, Russian Federation.

According to data released by the Japan Copper and Brass Association, output of rolled copper products in November totalled 69,132t, up by 2.1% m-o-m and 0.8% y-o-y. From a y-o-y perspective, it was the first increase in 16 months, supported by improved demand from the semiconductor and automotive industries. In addition, the Japanese Electric Wire and Cable Makers' Association reported that copper wire and cable shipments in November were 58,700t; the figure was down by 0.1% m-o-m and 7.7% y-o-y. It was reported that even though the automotive industry has shown some recovery signs, demand from the construction sector was still slow.

Japanese output of copper and copper alloy fabricated products increased by 5.4% to 73,680 tonnes in November, slightly down from 74,079 tonnes in October, according to the Japan Copper and Brass Association. This figure includes sheets and tubes, mainly used in automobiles and construction. Demand for copper products was supported by both local consumption and overseas shipments. This year's hot weather has boosted demand from the air-conditioner sector, where manufacturers have been building up inventories after robust sales in the summer.

Gaisky GOK, a subsidiary of UMMC, the Russian miner and producer of copper semis, announced on 26th November that its net revenue for the first nine months of the year increased by 6.89% to RUB12.28B (US$395M). However, the company's net profit fell by 6.4%, to RUB2.53B (US$81M) in the same period compared to a year before. Gaisky GOK is based at the Gaisky field and controls three quarters of the copper reserves in the Orenbursky region of Russia. UMMC manufactures semis products from its Kirov non-ferrous plant and recently acquired a new round rolled production line from German company TUF-CERT according to its website.

According to data from the Copper and Brass Servicenter (CBSA), shipments from US brass and copper mills fell 8.6% m-o-m in November, to 20.5Mlb (9,300t). The organisation said that total shipments in the first 11 months of the year were broadly unchanged from 2011, at 244.8Mlb (111,000t). A breakdown of the figures reveals that copper sheet and copper wirerod saw the smallest declines in the month, -5.2% m-o-m and -5.3% m-o-m respectively, whilst brass sheet was the worst performing sector recording an output drop of 11.7% m-o-m. In a survey released with the data, 83% of respondents said they expected orders to increase in the coming 3 months.

According to a press release from the Japanese wire and cable makers association, shipments of wire and cable from Japanese factories increased by 3.1% y-o-y in November.

A survey by the Shanghai Metals Market of 20 major Chinese electric wire and cable producers, with total capacity of 978,000t/y, showed that the average operating rate fell to 76.59% in December, down 2.8 percentage points from November. The survey cited the falling temperatures in Northern China as dampening the demand for electrical wire for use in new infrastructure. The survey also reported that raw materials inventories at Chinese electrical wire producers had increased by 4.24 percentage points from November to 25.12% of production, stating that the fall in copper prices in December had tempted producers to increase stocks.

A recent survey by the Shanghai Metals Market of 20 major Chinese copper tube producers, with a total capacity of 1.2Mt/y, showed that operating rates in December increased to 73.41%, up 2.29 percentage points from November. The survey cited increased production in China's air conditioner sector as a reason for the uptick in utilisation rates at tube producers. The release highlighted a separate survey of air conditioner manufacturers, which showed a pattern of inventory restocking, with finished inventories increasing for four straight months. The SMM survey also revealed that producer's inventories of raw materials for the production of copper tube had fallen to 12.78% of production in December, down 2.92 percentage points from November. The reason given was tighter credit conditions at the end of 2012.

Wuxi Lineo Science and Technology Group began construction of a 60,000t/y copper wirerod mill in Wuxi City, Jiangsu province. Start-up is expected to take place by October 2012. The company will also invest in a second phase expansion project that will involve the addition of another 60,000t/y wirerod production line by November 2014. The plant will be primarily fed with refined copper cathode sourced from Tongling Nonferrous Metals in Anhui province and is designed to serve wirerod to domestic wire and cable producers unless market prices become sufficiently attractive to allow for export. Wuxi Lineo Group is a private enterprise with downstream manufacturing subsidiaries producing cable, hardware, mechanical and electrical products.

The SERC (State Electricity Regulatory Commission) has released stricter technical regulations, especially for LVRT (Low Voltage Ride Through) reformation. Additionally, 18 industry standards have been released in November 2011 by the National Bureau of Energy. There are two immediate effects of the regulatory changes. Adding a LVRT capability will increase the cost of the Chinese turbines. This, coupled with slower demand, will lead to a squeezing out of the marginal producers who won't be able to afford to fit new equipment. Thus, the domestic wind power manufacturing sector in China is poised for tough times, when consolidation may even change the positioning of the top five players.

It was reported by China's General Administration of Customs that the nation's imports of refined copper, copper alloy and other copper products grew to 452,022t in November 2011. This represents a 17.9% m-o-m growth and the highest level of imports in 20 months. The increase is believed to be the result of Chinese buyers restocking following the collapse in copper prices in September.