According to Mysteel's survey, the overall capacity utilization rate of copper bar enterprises fell by 3.83% month on month from 57.72% in September to 53.89% in October.
Large-scale enterprises' capacity utilization rate was 55.89% in October, which fell by 3.14% month on month. The utilization rate was raised a little by downstream enterprises' rigid demand for raw material reserves after China's National Day holidays, while, with sharp fluctuations in copper and copper bar prices and increased risk aversion brought about by various macro events in the second half of October, downstream enterprises' purchasing volume didn't reach the level of previous years' peak season and copper bar output declined in October.
Same as large-scale enterprises, capacity utilization rates of small and medium-sized enterprises fell by 4.51% month on month to 51.89% in October. Orders from refrigeration equipment, plumbing, and sanitary enterprises declined by 30% year on year, which was directly related to the weakness of the real estate industry.
Unit:kt | |||||
Month |
Enterprise Scale |
Enterprise Quantity |
Annual Capacity |
Monthly Capacity |
Utilization Rate % |
October | ≥50 | 14 | 1,480.0 | 116.9 | 55.9% |
<50 | 50 | 806.5 | 68.9 | 51.9% | |
Total | 64 | 2,286.5 | 185.8 | 53.9% | |
Data Source: Mysteel |
According to Mysteel's survey, China's copper bar output of sample enterprises totaled 101,100 tonnes in October, with a month-on-month decrease of 5,930 tonnes. With the end of the consumption peak season, a decline in copper bar orders is a foregone conclusion. Copper bar enterprises are facing three pressures on production increasing: First, the volatile price of copper, coupled with low inventories and huge futures backs in China, has led to a divergence in buying intentions of terminal enterprises. Second, the recurrence of the epidemic in many places interferes with the production of copper bars and the supply of scarp raw materials. Third, orders in the plumbing and machining sectors are unlikely to pick up at the end of the year, while uncertainty remains over real estate and exports. Therefore, copper bar production is expected to be stable and with slight downward pressure in November.
Written by Edenlis Huang, huangting@mysteel.com
Edited by Paula Xu, xuzhongping@mysteel.com