Customs data: Half-yearly copper imports surged 22%; Iron ore imports up 9%

BEIJING (Scrap Monster):  The official data published Wednesday by the Chinese General Administration of Customs indicates that the country’s copper and iron ore imports surged higher during the initial half-yearly period in 2016. However, the imports of both commodities dropped over the previous month in June this year.

According to data, the official copper imports by the country during the month of June this year totaled 420,000 tonnes, marginally lower by 2.3% when matched with the imports during the month before that. The imports have registered decline for third month in a row, after hitting highest levels during March. Interestingly, copper demand from power sector remained buoyant during the month. The cumulative data for the initial six-month period of the year indicates 22% jump in imports over the previous year. The Chinese copper imports totaled 2.74 million tonnes during Jan-June ’16.

Analysts noted that the surge in copper demand was mainly led by growing demand from country’s power sector and rising investments in property market. The imports of concentrates continued to remain strong. The concentrate imports during the initial six-month period of the year have surged higher by nearly 35%. However, ore imports during the month of June alone posted a decline of 5.6% to 1.35 million tonnes.

The Customs data also indicates that imports of iron ore climbed higher by 9% during Jan-June ’16 when compared with the year before. The imports during the first half of 2016 totaled 493.7 million tonnes. However, the monthly imports dropped by 5.9% during June this year from a month ago. The Chinese iron ore imports during the month totaled 81.63 million tonnes. The shutdown of several loss-making iron ore mines in the country has led to increased iron ore imports by the country, analysts noted.

The ramped up steel production following recovery in steel prices has aided shipments of the steelmaking raw material into the country. The latest statistics released by the World Steel Association indicates that Chinese crude steel production has jumped higher to total 70.504 million tonnes during the month of May this year. Although official data for the month of June this year is yet to be released, estimates indicate significant jump in crude steel output. The steel exports data indicates that the country’s steel exports touched 10.94 million tonnes in June. The exports during the first half of the year have jumped higher by 9% over the previous year to 57.12 million tonnes.

On the other hand, the jump in trade surplus data for the month of June has raised concerns about weakening domestic demand. The country’s imports fell 2.3% year-on-year in June this year, whereas exports rose by 1.3%. Exports to the US fell 10.4% in June year-on-year while shipments to the EU region dropped by 3.6%. The monthly trade surplus edged higher by 12.8% over the previous year to 311.2 billion yuan. The Customs noted that the fall in import values is attributed to price weakness in major importing commodities. Meantime, China’s overall imports dropped 4.7% during the first half of the year. Also, exports too declined by 2.1% during this period.