China approves imports quotas of another 14,023 T of copper scrap

BEIJING, (Reuters) - China has approved import quotas for another 10,423 tonnes of high-grade copper scrap and 1,480 tonnes of aluminium scrap in 2020, the China Solid Waste and Chemicals Management Bureau said on Monday.

The bureau, which is part of China’s Ministry of Ecology and Environment, also granted import quotas of 310 tonnes of steel scrap, according to a notice published on its website.

The world’s top metals consumer has so far approved import quotas for 540,184 tonnes of copper scrap, 478,159 tonnes of aluminium scrap and 11,540 tonnes of steel scrap in 2020, according to Reuters calculations on the official data.

China classes scrap metal as a solid waste and aims to cut its imports to zero by end-2020. It will allow imports of high-quality copper and aluminium scrap that meeting new standards from July this year.