The Australian copper mining industry has experienced the least disruption during the COVID-19 pandemic, a report by International Copper Association of Australia (ICAA) detailed.
While global copper demand is short by 3-4pc this year due to the pandemic, miners can’t be too bothered as Chinese demand continues to grow and drive prices. China currently is “panic buying” as it hit low inventory levels which has resulted in its exports increasing by 20pc this year compared to 13.1pc last year.
That said, there have been reports that eight out of ten mines have recorded lower output in the first half of the year cutting down almost 750,000mt to 1mn mt of copper production globally. However, the ICAA report indicates that copper industry in general looks confident the demand will outpace supply in the long run.