With the ongoing volatility of copper pricing creating a major concern for the telecommunications industry as telecoms operators traditionally use copper ground wire for network grounding and bonding, CommScope Inc. has developed a copper-alternative grounding wire designed to deter copper theft and lower maintenance costs for telecoms and data applications.

Operations have commenced at Anhui Jingcheng Copper Share Co. Ltd.'s high precision copper plate and strip project. The new facility will manufacture 30,000t/y of material.

According to Chinese customs figures, imports of copper reached 508,942t in December, up 18% m-o-m. This is the seventh consecutive month which saw a m-o-m increase in the level of copper imports. The growth has been accredited to the arbitrage between the LME and the SHFE. Nevertheless, China's total imports of copper in 2011 were down 5.1% y-o-y, reaching 4.07Mt.

Power cable producer Jiangsu Zhongchao Cable plans to acquire three industry peers through a private placement, reports claim. Zhongchao Cable plans to issue a maximum of 68 million shares at not less than RMB13.43 (US$2.10) per share in order to raise a maximum of RMB900M (US$142.M) to acquire 51% stakes in Yufang Cable, Mingzhu Cable and Xizhou Magnet Wires, and to set up an operations centre in Shanghai. According to the filing, controlling shareholder, Jiangsu Zhongchao Group, plans to spend between RMB100M and RMB300M (US$15.9M and US$47.6M) for the private placement.

The Chinese government announced that it will terminate its old-for-new home appliances subsidy scheme on 31st December 2011. The subsidy, which was introduced on 1st June, provides consumers in Beijing, Shanghai, Tianjin, Fuzhou, Changsha and the provinces of Jiangsu, Zhejiang, Shandong, and Guangdong with a 10% discount on a selected group of appliances. These include televisions, refrigerators, washing machines, air-conditioners and computers. All of these appliances are major end use segments for copper semis products.

It was reported by Antaike that the construction of Anhui Xinke New Materials's copper rod and cable project in Wuhu Jiujiang Industrial Park commenced on 12th December. The construction of the project was commissioned to Wuhu Xinsheng Electric Materials, Xinke's wholly-owned subsidiary. Upon completion, the operation will have a production capacity of 150,000t/y of high quality copper rod and 20,000t/y of special cables.

Data released by the China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association (CNIA) indicates that in the first three quarters of this year China's production of copper semis reached 7.57Mt and apparent consumption reached 7.79Mt. This denotes a growth rate of 4.4% and 3.0% respectively.

According to IHS Automotive, production commenced at Delphi's wire harness plant outside of Shanghai. By the end of 2012, the US$10M plant will employ 2,000 on its 17,000m2 premises. The operation will produce high-tech components worth US$100M and will supply Shanghai Volkswagen and Shanghai General Motors.

Assomet, Italy's non-ferrous metals association, reported that the nation's output of copper and copper alloy semis declined by 2.4% y-o-y to 814,000t in the first three quarters of 2011. According to data obtained by Reuters, Q3 output alone fell by 5.8% y-o-y to 229,900t.

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.

The Saudi Cable Company announced that it has secured orders from two of Korea's biggest construction firms, taking its total order value for the month to over SAR1B (approximately US$266.6M). The Jeddah-based supplier of copper cables received a SAR63M (approximately US$16.8M) order from Doosan Company, a diversified firm covering construction and engineering among other sectors, and a SAR56M (approximately US$14.93M) order from Hyundai Engineering. Both mandates will be supplied in Q1 of next year.

Leoni AG announced that it is opening a plant in Jining in northeast China's Shandong province to produce wire harnesses for General Motors Co. and other customers.

According to Antaike, Zhejiang Fuyang Kalaite Metal Products Co., a brass bar and lead brass producer, will develop a copper and zinc project in the Yugan Industrial Park at an investment cost of RMB100M (approximately US$15.7). The combined production capacity of the project is expected to reach 200,000t/y and the operation will employ around 100 staff.

According to reports, Aurubis, Europe's leading copper semis fabricator, is successfully maintaining high levels of output and is looking for takeover opportunities despite the current economic turmoil in the eurozone. The company sees current global demand for copper as strong and does not expect it to weaken in the coming months. It has been speculated that Aurubis may acquire assets in Asia and/or South America in the near term. Nevertheless, the company announced last week that it plans to close some its flat rolled copper operations in Finspång, Sweden due to overcapacity.

It was reported that Eredi Gnutti Metalli (EGM), Italy's leading copper alloy semis fabricator, holds a positive outlook on production in the coming months in spite of economic turbulence in the eurozone. The company is hoping to increase its production to between 120,000t and 130,000t in the 2012 fiscal year. EGM has been undergoing a process of consolidation in recent months and has recently procured copper and copper alloy semis fabricator Ilnor.

It was reported that Brazil's trade protection authority launched an investigation into the dumping of Chinese copper tube, which is equal or less than 108mm, on the Brazilian market. Two of the firms involved in the practice include Shanghai Hailiang Copper and its subsidiary, Zhejiang Hailiang. Both firms are reported to have achieved a turnover of RMB310M in exports to Brazil during the first three quarters of 2011. The China Hailiang Group announced that it will continue to export copper tube to Brazil, but through a subsidiary in Vietnam in order to avoid further anti-dumping allegations.

Taewoo Metals, a South Korean, wirerod producer, announced that it plans to invest KRW50B (approximately US$44.25M) in replacing its outdated production facilities with new ones. Once complete, the new production facilities will provide 120,000t of wirerod production capacity and 50,000t of copper billet production capacity.

According to MarketWatch, copper semis fabricators are increasingly looking at supplying niche markets as a result of stagnating demand for more traditional copper semis products and pressure from substitute materials. For example, Luvata, a leading copper semis fabricator, is increasingly focusing on promoting uniquely thin and flexible copper wire utilised in efficient solar panels, as well as, anti-fowling wire for cages utilised by the fishing industry. Other fast growing markets that utilise niche copper semis products include oil and gas exploration, mining and wind generation.

According to Antaike, a metals research group, China's growth in refined copper consumption is set to slow in the coming year. The group forecasts consumption growth of 6.4% in 2012, compared to expected growth of 8.5% this year and 11.5% growth in 2010. This slowdown in consumption is likely to put downward pressure on copper prices, which have recently fallen to the lowest levels this year on eurozone and US debt concerns. Tight credit as well as struggling automotive sales, fewer new-home start-ups and declining railroad investment were quoted as key contributors to slowing refined copper demand.

According to the China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association, the nation's refined copper consumption in the first three quarters of this year reached 5.5Mt, up 8% y-o-y. The industry body anticipates that consumption will reach around 7Mt for the whole of 2011. The growth in consumption has been accredited to greater semis production capacity.