Jingcheng Copper Co. Ltd. announced that it will expand its high precision copper alloy sheet and strip project from 20ktpy to 30ktpy. The new project will produce brass strip for linker, socket connector, decorating, electronic equipment and other applications. The total investment of the project amounts to 495M yuan (US$73M) whilst it will take 23 months to construct. Jingcheng Copper is a copper and alloy sheet and strip fabricator located in Wuhu City, Anhui Province, with total capacity of 70ktpy and annual production value of 2B yuan (US$293M).

According to preliminary data released by the Japan Copper and Brass Association, production of rolled copper and alloy semis in April fell by 48.6% y-o-y to an estimated 44,420t. Compared with March, the figure represents a 28.7% rise, however, April was the 9th consecutive month that production fell. The Japanese Electric Wire and Cable Makers' Association said last week that copper wire and cable sales in April dropped by 26.3% y-o-y and 18.8% m-o-m to an estimated 52,200t. The deep economic downturn continues to take its toll on copper consumption in the world's second largest economy.

LS Cable may see a 5% y-o-y fall in its copper consumption in the current year. This will be the second consecutive year that copper consumption dropped, as the company already experienced a 5% y-o-y plunge in 2008 to 270,000t. Copper accounts for about 30% of the company's production costs. LS Cable has announced that it is focusing on higher value added products such as underground and extra high-voltage cables in developing regions including the Middle East, China and other Asian countries.

Dongguan Huaxin Wire & Cable Co. Ltd. produced 4,433 tonnes of 8mm copper wirerod in April, down by 11.2% m-o-m. In the four months to April, the company produced 15.2kt of copper wirerod whilst it sold 13.9kt. About 78% of production in March and April was exported. Dongguan Huaxin's annual capacity of copper wirerod amounts to 72kt per annum.

Prysmian SpA, the Italian cable maker, has announced consolidated sales results for Q1 2009. Sales amounted to EURO 926 million, a decrease of 11.5% compared with the same period in 2008. Net profit was EURO 91 million, down by 11.1% y-o-y. The company attributed this decline to the economic downturn, already evident in Q4 2008. In response to this, Prysmian is focusing on higher value-added activities and high-tech market segments. The company said that it managed to achieve satisfactory profits supported by the growth of sales in the sectors of high voltage underground and submarine cables along with industrial cables such as those for oil& gas, renewable energy and infrastructure.

The growth of the wire and cable industry in Bangladesh has been hit by the economic crisis. The two major local consumers in the industry are the power sector and industrial units. Poly Cables, said that they currently face a shortage of adequate buyers and reported a 60% y-o-y plunge in sales in the period January-April. Paradise Cables said that they are still performing well in the power cable business as they hold some supply contracts. However, the company is concerned about the global and domestic gloomy economic environment. Since independence, Bangladesh has invested in connecting outreach areas. As a result, industrial and power sector cables have contributed considerably to the growth of local cable manufacturers.

KME Group SpA, a leading copper and copper alloy semis maker based in Italy, will buy 30% of Sigimet SpA, an Italian ferrous and non-ferrous metals trader. The company also bought 30% of Italian scrap metals trader Metalbuyer in February. In both cases, KME holds the option to raise its share. Considering that the company relies on scrap for more than 50% of its metal input, the acquisitions will lead to a reduction in supply costs. The company said that the acquisitions will benefit industrial activity, however, the main objective was diversification rather than integration.

According to government announcements, Chile, which mines about one third of world's copper, produced 429,620 tonnes of copper in March. This represents a 5.9% decline in output compared with the same period in 2008. Output in February also declined by 9.8% y-o-y.

Electrodeposited copper foil manufacturers in Japan are to increase purchasing of copper scrap in May. Some dealers have already agreed to supply the increased quantity, however, scrap generation remains low due to the ongoing industrial and building construction slowdown. It has been reported that since the beginning of the year, Japanese copper foil makers have cut their copper scrap procurement by 50%. According to the new plans, copper foil producers intend to double copper scrap buying compared to January-April.

Tongling Nonferrous Metals Group Co., Ltd. has announced that it will invest more than 220 million yuan in Tongling Nonferrous Stock Copper Semis Co., Ltd. As a result, the registered capital of its 100% owned subsidiary will rise from 60 million yuan to 280 million yuan. The subsidiary will be renamed to Tongling Nonferrous Tongguan Electronics Co., Ltd. It will engage in "the processing of copper semis such as enamelled wires, cables, phosphorus copper balls and other copper wire".

According to preliminary data announced by the Japanese Electric Wire and Cable Makers' Association, copper wire and cable offtake in March plunged by 25% y-o-y to 53,400t (estimated). February was a weaker month that fell by 32.7% y-o-y to 49,313t (confirmed). On a m-o-m basis, sales in March rose by 8.3%.

Furukawa Electric has reported a recent improvement in its magnet wire production, and plans a monthly production in fiscal 2009 (ending March 2010) of 1,500 tonnes of enamelled wire and 85,000 km of triple insulated magnet wire; this is 70-75% (for enamelled wire) and 80-85% (for triple insulated magnet wire) of the peak levels produced in April-September 2008. Enamelled wire production could reach 1,700-1,800 tonnes per month in October 2009-March 2010. Furukawa Electric's domestic magnet wire production is being consolidated into its Mie Works in order to cut costs; production at its Hiratsuka Works will transfer to Mie within 2009.

Hitachi Cable Ltd. is expected to suffer pretax losses of Y23 billion for FY2008. The company maintains copper stocks used in cable and other semis production and due to plunging copper prices, it incurred valuation losses of around Y10 billion. In the year to 31st March, it is anticipated that sales have plummeted by 15% y-o-y to Y480 billion. One of the factors has been the slowdown in LCD tape offtake. For FY2009, Hitachi intends to make a pretax profit of around Y500 million. To achieve this, the company will consider measures such as production base consolidations. Sales in FY2009 are expected to fall by 25% y-o-y to Y360 billion.

According to data released by the Japanese Electric Wire and Cable Makers' Association, wire and cable sales in FY2008 plunged to 759,368 tonnes compared to 856,151 in FY2007. This represents a 11.3% y-o-y decline, reaching the lowest level since 1976. In addition, copper and copper alloy semis, including sheets and tubes, experienced a record y-o-y decrease in March, the lowest in more than 34 years. The Japan Copper and Brass Association reported that production of copper and copper alloy semis in March shrunk by 60% y-o-y to 34,440 tonnes. For the year ended 31st March, output fell by 19% y-o-y to 806,927 tonnes, the lowest since 1982.

Hitachi Cable said that it plans to cut rolled copper output by 7% in FY2009 compared to FY2008. As a result, the company will now produce 5,760 tonnes of rolled copper output per month. Hitachi Cable intends to expand the sales of growing items, such as copper tube for heat pump hot water supply systems and rolled copper foil for lithium ion batteries. In copper strip, the company experienced very low demand in February but anticipates that it will improve in FY2009.

Nexans, the world's largest cable maker, has announced its sales results for Q1 2009. In the three months to March 31, sales amounted to 1.245 billion euros (US$1.61 billion), down by 28.5% compared with the same period in 2008 at constant metal prices. Net debt at the end of Q1 was reduced to 362 million euros (US$468 million) compared to 536 million euros (US$693 million) at the end of Q4 2008. The company said that in response to the economic crisis, it will accelerate restructuring and cut the workforce by 900. Nexans has restructured its business in Canada while it intends to shut down its Building Cable business in Germany. Further plans may be announced mainly in Europe.

Finish copper fabricator Luvata intends to improve its supply chain with the prospect of economic recovery. The company anticipates that the market will recover by the end of Q1 2010 and recognises that it needs to prepare so as to regain market share. Senior Vice President of procurement Bob Kickham said that once the market starts to recover, copper prices may increase again. Given the ongoing fears of substitution toward aluminium, a more streamlined and efficient supply chain will provide considerable support to copper.

Positive expectations for copper producers have been generated by the recent increases in copper prices that reached US$4,725/t on the LME on 17th April. In Germany, copper smelter Aurubis expects that backed by rising prices the company will achieve oparating profits in the current fiscal year. Due to writedowns, the group suffered net losses in Q1 2009. In Poland, copper miner KGHM said that higher than expected prices may support the company to surpass its forecast. As a result, the company is updating its budget assumptions.

KITZ Corporation has announced that it will integrate its two brass bar manufacturing subsidiaries with effect from July 1st. According to the plan, KITZ Metal Works will take over Kyoto Brass and brass bar production will be integrated at the Nagano plant, Japan owned by KITZ Metal Works. As a result, Kyoto Brass' plant in Kyoto, Japan will be closed. The decision is attributed to the global economic downturn that has been taking place since autumn 2008. Total brass bar output of the two plants in January amounted to 3,000t, down by 40% y-o-y. The company anticipates that demand will not recover in the short run.

Xingye Copper International Group Ltd. raised its copper plate and strip capacity to 80kt. Capacity expansion has been achieved by improving technology. The company is a major high precision copper plate and strip producer in China with two plants in Cixi City, Zhejiang Province and Yingtan City, Jiangxi Province. For FY2008, Xingye Copper reported operating income of 1.758 billion yuan, down by 16.1% y-o-y, and shipments of 44,387 tonnes compared to 51,889 tonnes in 2007.