The weekly spreads for US domestic copper scrap tightened for most grades on stable demand and a fall in Comex copper prices on Tuesday.
Comex copper spot prices declined by 13¢/lb from Jun 1 to $4.52/lb today, giving up all the gains made in the prior week after touching record highs in mid-May.
The Davis Index spread for #1 copper wire & tube tightened by 0.5¢/lb to 24.2¢/lb under the June Comex contract, with the grade’s weekly transaction price falling by 14¢/lb to $4.27/lb delivered.
Spreads for US bare bright copper scrap (barley) tightened by 0.6¢/lb to 15.9¢/lb under the June Comex contract on Tuesday, with its transaction price declining by 13¢/lb to $4.36/lb delivered US consumer.
For #2 light copper, the spread widened by 9.5¢/lb to 65¢/lb under the June Comex contract while the transaction price for #2 light decreased by 23¢/lb to $3.87/lb delivered US consumer.
Demand has remained stable in the copper market over the past week as buyers return to buy shipments for June after remaining quiet over the past two months. Still, the wide fluctuations in Comex copper are impacting buying decisions and trade is expected to pick up the pace once there is more stability in Comex prices. Copper scrap exports may revive over the next few weeks after China made some more changes to its import policy for some grades.