According to data from the online query platform of the General Administration of Customs, China's imports of copper ore and concentrates in March 2026 totaled 2,629,996.23 mt, up 13.84% MoM and 9.99% YoY. Shipments from major supplying countries such as Chile, Peru, and Mongolia all increased to varying degrees. However, spot copper concentrate TCs in China remained at low levels, and the tight ore supply situation continued. Below is the supply breakdown from major source countries for China's copper ore imports since March 2020: Data source: General Administration of Customs (Wenhua Composite)

General Administration of Customs: In February 2026, China imported 2.31 million dmt of copper ore and concentrate, a decrease of 11.97% month-on-month and an increase of 5.84% year-on-year. The cumulative imports in January-February increased by 4.9%.

General Administration of Customs: In January 2026, China imported 2.624 million dmt of copper ores and concentrates, a decrease of 2.96% month-on-month and an increase of 3.72% year-on-year.

According to data from the General Administration of Customs' online query platform, China's imports of copper ores and concentrates in April reached 2.9244 million mt, up 22.20% MoM and 25.62% YoY. Among them, shipments from Chile continued to rebound to approximately 850,000 mt, maintaining its top position, while Peru's supply stopped declining and significantly rebounded to around 786,800 mt. Despite the sequential and year-on-year increases in China's copper ore imports, which reached a new multi-year monthly high, the downward trend in domestic spot processing fees for copper concentrates has not yet halted. The following is the supply situation of China's main import sources of copper ores since March 2020: Source: General Administration of Customs

According to data from the General Administration of Customs online query platform, China's imports of copper ores and concentrates in March reached 2.3939 million mt, up 9.67% MoM and 2.80% YoY. Among them, shipments from Chile rebounded to around 800,000 mt, still ranking first, while supply from Peru continued to decline to around 560,000 mt. Despite the MoM and YoY increases in China's copper ore imports, spot copper concentrate TCs in the domestic market continued to decline, and the tight supply and demand situation in the ore sector remained unchanged. Below is the supply situation of China's major copper ore import sources since 2019: Data source: General Administration of Customs.

According to SMM, China's imports of copper ore and concentrates were 2.5313 million mt in January and 2.1825 million mt in February. Shipments from Chile pulled back MoM, reaching only around 760,000 mt in February but still topping the list. Peru's supply climbed to over 10,000 mt in January before sliding to around 620,000 mt in February. Currently, spot TCs for copper concentrates in China remain in negative territory, with the tightness in copper ore supply yet to be alleviated.