Copper prices continued increasing in futures markets on June 30, but slightly dropped in China's spot market as some holders actively lowered prices to sell at the month-end. On the macro side, China's June manufacturing PMI returned to expansion at 50.3%, up 0.3 percentage points compared with May, signaling improved economic activity and supported commodity prices.
China's copper market stayed generally cautious at the month-end. Refined copper spot trading declined on June 30, constrained by limited funds, settlements, and mediocre downstream procurement based on rigid needs. Copper scrap trading also dropped, as supply remained scarce with prices firm. Upstream holders maintained cautious sentiment, while downstream scrap processors faced funding pressure and sluggish end-user demand, limiting overall transactions.
During mid-year negotiations for long-term copper concentrate contracts, Chilean miner Antofagasta proposed replacing the traditional fixed treatment and refining charge (TC/RC) pattern with a floating pricing mechanism linked to the spot TC index, which has been widely rejected by Chinese copper smelters, according to market sources on June 29. The proposal highlights growing disagreements over the future of the annual benchmark TC/RC system, which has faced mounting challenges as spot market dynamics increasingly diverge from fixed annual contract terms.
Trading in China's copper semis markets stayed weak on June 30. While copper rod and copper tube orders remained supported by long-term contract deliveries, copper plate/strip transactions stayed mediocre on sluggish end-user demand. Meanwhile, limited copper scrap supply constrained both copper bar production and sales.
