China Copper Wire and Cable Output Falls Amid Weakened Demand

Copper wire and cable production in China continued to decline this week due to weak demand. According to Shanghai Metals Market, the operating rate for copper wire and cable enterprises fell to 62.25% on August 13, down 1.4 percentage points from last week and 7.05 percentage points from the same period last year.

The high price of copper has been a major factor in curbing demand, with downstream purchasing appetite continuing to decrease. As a result, industry production loads have declined further, while raw material inventory decreased by 0.49% on average over the week. Downstream enterprises prioritized drawing down finished product inventories, which fell 2.33% on average.

Looking ahead to next week, Shanghai Metals Market expects the copper wire and cable operating rate to continue falling due to weak demand. The market predicts a further decline of 1.18 percentage points to 61.08% for the period August 14-20, down 7.8 percentage points from last year.