AM Statistics: Operating rate of Chinese major copper rod plants in November up by 4% MOM

BEIJING (Asian Metal) 17 Dec 13 – According to statistics from Asian Metal, the average operating rate of major copper rod plants in China was around 73% in November, up from 69% in October.

The survey from Asian Metal about the copper rod production in 20 copper rod plants in China showed that total production with the annual capacity of 4.95 million tons was 299,400t in November, up by 5% from 286,000t in October. Among the 20 copper rod producers, there are 8 large-sized producers with the annual capacity of above or equal to 300,000t each, and the total capacity is 3.21 million tons; there are 11 mid-sized producers with capacity at 100,000-300,000tpy for each and 1.66 million tons in total; there is one producer (below 100,000tpy each) with the capacity of 80,000tpy. The operating rates in different regions are shown below in form:

Region	Capacity (per year)	Operating rate (Oct)	Operating rate (Nov)
Tianjin	540,000	73%	71%
Shandong	640,000	45%	55%
Gansu	150,000	64%	60%
Anhui	400,000	72%	81%
Zhejiang	270,000	90%	90%
Jiangsu	2,430,000	52%	55%
Jiangxi	490,000	91%	104%

In October, Chinese production of copper rod declined obviously due to the National Day holiday. Last month, most domestic producers returned to normal production, and the output increased. In addition, some producers advanced production in order to fulfill the yearly output target. Furthermore, domestic demand improved slightly. In this case, the operating rate of copper rod plants rose in November.

With the year-end approaching, copper rod producers and consumers are under pressure of capital turnover, and many producers said that their orders decline. In this case, copper rod production and the operating rate may go down to some extent in December.