Chinese copper imports rebounded in March, says trade data

The imports of copper by Chinese steel mills and fabricators surged higher during the month of March this year

BEIJING (Scrap Monster): The imports of copper by Chinese steel mills and fabricators surged higher during the month of March this year, primarily on the back of multi-year low prices. Copper prices had fallen over 5% in March alone, hitting a three and a half year low.

Earlier, during the month of February this year, the Chinese imports of copper anode, alloy and semi-finished copper products had declined by nearly 30% from the previous month to 379,000 tonnes due to the Lunar New Year holiday. However, lower prices and expectations of improved demand spiked up exports during March.

The imports during March were boosted by a series of government announcements which suggested improved demand in the forthcoming months. Beijing had announced to speed up the construction of railway lines. It also had announced mammoth $161.37 billion plan to redevelop Chinese cities, which also is expected to boost the demand for copper.

According to customs data, the country’s total imports of copper in March this year were up 10.8% from the previous month. The copper imports totaled 420,000 tonnes during March. The imports of copper during the first quarter of 2014 totaled 1.33 million tonnes, 37% higher when compared with the imports during the same quarter a year ago.

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