Hong Kong (Platts)--22Jan2013/422 am EST/922 GMT
China's 2012 refined copper imports hit a record high of 3.4 million mt, crossing the previous record seen for 2009 at 3.19 million mt, the latest figures from the General Administration of Customs of China showed Tuesday. The 2012 import volume was 20% higher than the 2011 volume. "The higher import volume last year is mainly due to strong demand in the first half of last year from companies [which sought the material as collateral against loans]," He Xiaohui, a copper analyst with Antaike said. "In the second-half of 2012, however, the [import volume] gradually returned to reasonable levels," he said. Article continues below...Metals Daily now available on Platts Market CenterPlatts Metals Daily is now available for subscribers on Platts Market Center, an interactive website featuring Platts news, market commentaries, proprietary price assessments and archived content, as well as the daily PDF. PMC will also make available several key US benchmark assessments to subscribers earlier in the US day than with the current PDF-only delivery mode. PMC also includes archived proprietary prices and a custom graphing feature. PMC offers a mobile version viewable on PDAs and smart phones. For further information on registration, please contact Customer Care: support@platts.com
China's 2012 refined copper imports hit a record high of 3.4 million mt, crossing the previous record seen for 2009 at 3.19 million mt, the latest figures from the General Administration of Customs of China showed Tuesday. The 2012 import volume was 20% higher than the 2011 volume. "The higher import volume last year is mainly due to strong demand in the first half of last year from companies [which sought the material as collateral against loans]," He Xiaohui, a copper analyst with Antaike said. "In the second-half of 2012, however, the [import volume] gradually returned to reasonable levels," he said.
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Platts Metals Daily is now available for subscribers on Platts Market Center, an interactive website featuring Platts news, market commentaries, proprietary price assessments and archived content, as well as the daily PDF. PMC will also make available several key US benchmark assessments to subscribers earlier in the US day than with the current PDF-only delivery mode. PMC also includes archived proprietary prices and a custom graphing feature. PMC offers a mobile version viewable on PDAs and smart phones. For further information on registration, please contact Customer Care: support@platts.com
Antaike forecast that China will import 2.8 million-2.9 million mt of refined copper in 2013, down from the 3.4 million in 2012, amid higher domestic production expected this year. Unless companies try to get loans from banks using copper imports as collateral, "this year's import volume will be less than last year," the Antaike analyst said. A Hong Kong-based copper trader said: "Besides high domestic inventories, difficulty in getting LCs is another reason for discouraging imports ... it's getting harder to [import nowadays] as the Chinese government [has tightened rules requiring buyers to provide] relevant [documents regarding] environment protection and country of origin [of the copper imports]." Copper stocks at bonded warehouses in Shanghai hit 1 million mt as of end-December, double the March 2012 levels of 500,000 mt, Chinese media reported last Friday.--Joshua Leung, newsdesk@platts.com--Edited by Haripriya Banerjee, haripriya_banerjee@platts.com
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