Satellites spot China slowing copper smelters

Global copper smelters were about a third more idle this year through February than they normally are as leading producer China slowed output, according to a London-based company that uses satellites to monitor emissions.

Capacity at smelters for the wiring metal were inactive 11.5% of the time compared with 8.6% in the year-ago period, Earth-i said this week. It found China’s smelters were down 8.3% this year versus 4.8% in last year’s first two months.

“Production in China is normally elevated during this period as regular maintenance closures tend to take place later in the year,” Earth-i said in a report. “Copper market watchers are tracking Chinese output carefully at the moment, not only because it is the world’s biggest producer, but also because it is the main destination for mined concentrate.”

It wouldn’t take much for smelter activity to resume more usual levels, but the market is considering how China’s copper smelter purchase team may cut production when it meets this week, Earth-i said.

Copper treatment charges per tonne, a key income of custom smelters often located in China, fell to US$12.70 this month from US$48.20 in January and more than US$70 a year ago, according to Fastmarkets. It’s the lowest since the company began tracking the price in 2015.