Demand for copper ingots from China-based copper mills rose after the country resumed normal operations, while strict nationwide lockdowns in India and Pakistan caused production and sales to come to a halt.
The weekly Davis Index for copper ingots settled at $4,613/mt cif China port down by $64/mt on Thursday. Chinese buyers confirmed a few bookings before India went into lockdown. Ingot manufacturers in India and Pakistan were further discouraged to sell because of lower margins due to fall in LME copper and a dip in the value of local currency against the US dollar.
Bookings for copper wire scrap by Indian copper mills thinned in the past two weeks. The weekly Davis Index for Berry settled at $4,657/mt cfr India port down by $142/mt, on a $114.5/mt drop in the official three-month LME copper contract. The weekly index for Berry/Candy settled at $4,564/mt cfr India port, down by $121/mt and the index for Birch/Cliff settled at $4,182/mt cfr India port, down by $113/mt. Copper scrap importers are facing trouble in clearing shipments that have reached ports amid the lockdown.
The weekly Davis Index for Honey brass scrap Thursday settled at $3,117/mt cfr India port down by $111/mt on a $50/mt drop in the official three-month LME zinc contract, in line with a fall in LME copper.
The official three-month LME copper contract Wednesday settled at $4,766.5/mt, down by 2.4pc from a week ago, lowest since October 2016.