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Copper cables may be used in place of aluminum in overhead applications. Also, undergrounding cables is a viable alternative to fully protect against storm damage.

El Sewedy Cables said that profits surged by 53% y-o-y to 270 million Egyptian pounds in Q2 2010 (US$47 million), beating analysts' forecasts. The company engages in the production of cables for the power and telecommunication sectors. It was reported that because other cable makers had cut output due to the recession, El Sewedy was offered the opportunity to boost exports and increase profit margins in 2010. The company has production facilities in Egypt and 10 other countries, and exports to the Middle East, North Africa, Spain, Portugal, eastern European countries and Brazil.

Newmont Mining Corp. posted a sharply higher second-quarter profit Thursday, with record-high gold prices and production gains pumping revenue past most analysts' expectations. Newmont (NEM:Newmont Mining Corporation News, chart, profile, more Last: 49.02+0.25+0.51% 2:30pm 07/25/2008 Delayed quote dataAdd to portfolio Analyst Create alertInsider Discuss Financials Sponsored by: NEM 49.02, +0.25, +0.5%) shares rose $1.82, or 3.9%, to close at $48.77. The stock is up 12% over the past 12 months. Newmont reported net income for the three months ended June 30 swung to $277 million, or 61 cents a share, from a year-ago loss of $2.06 billion, or $4.57 a share. The year-ago numbers were heavily skewed by a $1.67 billion write-down tied to the company's exit from merchant banking and a $460 million charge for settling price-capped forwards contracts. Adjusted earnings from ongoing operations more than doubled to $230 million, or 51 cents a share, from $103 million, or 23 cents, a year earlier. Gold sales during the quarter totaled 1.27 million equity ounces, fetching on average $900 an ounce, as the precious metal rode a huge spike in commodity prices. Gold prices were averaging about $600 an ounce a year ago. Costs per ounce rose, however, to $440 an ounce from $417 a year ago. Copper sales accounted for $183 million during the quarter, down from $340 million a year earlier. Newmont stood by its earlier 2008 production forecast of 5.1 million to 5.4 million ounces of gold, with production cost expected to range from $425 to $450 per ounce.

Effective as of October, Kobelco & Materials Copper Tube (KMCT) intends to raise their rolling charge by ¥30-50/kg. The price hike, the first since 2005, is a result of surging fuel and raw material costs. 70% of the cost up is a consequence of higher energy and substantial materials prices, with the remaining 30% due to the increased value of productive loss. This announcement comes in the wake of a raft of similar announcements from other Japanese copper tube makers, with Hitachi Cable announcing a 5% increase, Sumitomo Light Metal Industries adding 10-15%, and Furukawa Electric raising charges by ¥50/kg.

H1 reports from China's metal companies have revealed difficult operating conditions as rising energy prices, investment in environmental protection and an increase in resource tax have squeezed margins. Shares in the metal index fell 58.6% in the first half of the year, underperforming the SSE Composite Index which saw a 48% decrease. Copper companies fared better than most as the copper price remained at historically high levels and prices of sulphuric acid - a byproduct of the copper treatment process - soared. Jiangxi Copper, China's biggest producer, reported strong results with a 55% surge in revenues year-on-year. Net profit grew at the slower rate of 32.8%, reducing the company's profit margin to 10.4%, from 12.1% in the first half of 2007. The company has a slightly bearish outlook for the rest of this year, as the continued slowdown in the global economy takes its toll on copper demand and the appreciation of the dollar puts downward pressure on copper prices. However, it suspects copper supply will remain tight, which should support prices on the downside. Yunnan Copper Company struggled in the first half as revenue fell 18.9% and net profit plunged 29.5% y-o-y. The companies profit margin was cut to 3.8%, from 4.4% in the first half of 2007. A 45-day machine overhaul was blamed for the poor sales figures as output remained flat, whilst high energy prices pushed up production costs. Tongling Nonferrous Metals saw similar problems to Yunnan as rising raw material prices and fluctuations in the copper price cut the gross margin in the firm's copper unit to just 0.59%. Company-wide results were improved greatly by the strong performance of sulphuric acid, where gross margin increased to 71.6%, bringing Tongling's profit margin to 2.9%, up from 2.0% in H1 2007.

LONDON (Reuters) - Copper prices could hit fresh record highs this year as the Chinese economy continues to expand despite a slowdown in the United States, the chief economist of miner Rio Tinto (RIO.L: Quote, Profile, Research) said on Thursday.

Chinese copper and copper alloy semis production has continued to surge in the first quarter of 2008 according to the Chinese National Bureau of Statistics. Production expanded by 24.6% year-on-year to 1.787 million tonnes compared to 1.432 million tonnes in the same period of 2007. Production in March totalled 643,000 tonnes a 15.9% rise from the 555,000 tonnes of copper semis manufactured in the same month of 2007. Total production last year was 6.626 million tonnes. The latest numbers demonstrate China's growing appetite for both refined and scrap copper even at extremely high price levels. However, recent reports suggest that the rate of growth will moderate in April.

Copper semis production still growing strongly up 25% yoy in Q1 2008

Chinese imports of copper and copper semis contracted by 36% m-o-m to 235,500t in February 2011, according to customs statistics. The figure was also down by 27% from the same period a year ago. It was reported that utilisation rates of copper semis makers declined after the Chinese New Year, and therefore copper consumption fell. In addition, some semis fabricators had built stock before the festive season, which impacted imports in February. On anticipation of surging copper prices, imports were very strong in January and that led to high inventory levels in Shanghai bonded warehouses.