SMM Morning Meeting Minutes: Overnight, LME copper opened at $14,045/mt, hit a high of $14,106.5/mt early in the session, then its price center descended and fell to $13,958/mt, before finally closing at $13,961.5/mt, down 1.2%. Trading volume reached 21,000 lots, and open interest stood at 270,000 lots, a decrease of 276 lots from the previous session, indicating long liquidation. Overnight, the most-traded SHFE copper 2609 contract opened at 107,630 yuan/mt, immediately hitting a high of 107,770 yuan/mt, then the price center plunged straight down to hit a bottom of 106,820 yuan/mt, finally closing at 107,020 yuan/mt, down 0.89%. Trading volume reached 42,000 lots, and open interest stood at 186,000 lots, a decrease of 6,652 lots from the previous session, indicating long liquidation.

SMM August 18 At 11:30 today, the futures closing price was 107,690 yuan/mt, down 2,210 yuan/mt from the previous trading day; spot premiums averaged 415 yuan/mt, up 335 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. Today, copper scrap prices fell 500 yuan/mt from the previous day; the copper scrap sales sentiment index fell to 2.73, while the procurement sentiment index rose to 1.82; the price difference between copper cathode and copper scrap was 4,098 yuan/mt, down 1,435 yuan/mt from the previous day. The price difference between copper cathode rod and secondary copper rod was 1,430 yuan/mt. According to an SMM survey, after the futures delivery day ended, copper prices quickly pulled back. Although secondary copper rod enterprises wanted to purchase more, copper scrap suppliers believed prices had fallen too much and were unwilling to sell at low levels; most held prices firm while selling. Tax-included copper scrap prices were relatively firm, and intraday quotations were at a discount of 1,500 yuan/mt against futures, narrowing by 200 yuan/mt from yesterday.

[SMM Analysis: From Aurubis to Nexans and Wieland: Why Are European and US Copper Companies Expanding Recycling Capacity?]European and US copper companies have accelerated investment in recycled raw materials. Copper scrap is therefore becoming more than a supplement to primary copper. It is increasingly viewed as a strategic resource that can improve raw material security, diversify earnings and reduce product carbon footprints.

[SMM Analysis: From Aurubis to Nexans and Wieland, Why Are European and American Copper Companies Collectively Ramping Up Recycled Raw Materials?] In recent years, the copper industry in Europe and the United States has significantly accelerated its push into recycled raw materials, and participants are no longer limited to traditional secondary copper smelters. From integrated smelters such as Aurubis, Boliden, and Glencore to wire-and-cable and copper-processing enterprises such as Nexans and Wieland, different segments of the industry are simultaneously strengthening their capabilities in copper scrap recycling, pretreatment, smelting, and internal recycling. This means the logic behind the development of the secondary copper industry in Europe and the United States is shifting: recycled raw materials are no longer merely a supplement to primary copper supply, but are gradually becoming an important strategic resource for companies to ensure raw material security, stabilize profit sources, and reduce the carbon footprint of their products.

SMM Morning Meeting Minutes: Overnight, LME copper opened at $14,320/mt and hit an early high of $14,343/mt. Copper prices then saw their center move lower and dipped to $14,122/mt, before ultimately moving sideways to close at $14,130.5/mt, down 0.3%. Trading volume reached 24,000 lots, and open interest reached 270,000 lots, an increase of 904 lots from the previous trading day, indicating bears added positions. Overnight, the most-traded SHFE copper 2609 contract opened at 108,840 yuan/mt and hit an early high of 108,860 yuan/mt. Copper prices then saw their center fall straight down and hit bottom at 107,740 yuan/mt, before ultimately moving sideways to close at 108,070 yuan/mt, down 0.84%. Trading volume reached 52,500 lots, and open interest reached 199,000 lots, a decrease of 11,525 lots from the previous trading day, indicating bulls reduced positions.

SMM August 17 At 11:30 today, the futures closing price was 109,900 yuan/mt, up 1,650 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. The average spot premiums were 80 yuan/mt, up 210 yuan/mt MoM from the previous trading day. Today, copper scrap prices rose 600 yuan/mt MoM. The copper scrap selling sentiment index rose to 2.85, while the purchasing sentiment index fell to 1.72. The price difference between copper cathode and copper scrap was 5,533 yuan/mt, up 972 yuan/mt MoM. The price difference between copper cathode rod and secondary copper rod was 2,260 yuan/mt. According to the SMM survey, intraday delivery of futures contracts and a sharp rise in copper prices threw copper scrap market quotations into disarray. Scrap utilization enterprises were unwilling to follow the rally and maintained a low-price procurement strategy, while suppliers of copper scrap were bullish on further rises in copper prices and showed weak willingness to sell. Overall intraday transactions were relatively weak.

SMM Morning Meeting Minutes: Last Friday night, LME copper opened at $14,108.5/mt and dipped to $14,099.5/mt early in the session. Copper prices then drifted higher, with the center rising to $14,196/mt, and finally closed at $14,172.5/mt, up 0.26%. Trading volume reached 13,000 lots, and open interest stood at 269,000 lots, an increase of 3,237 lots from the previous trading day, indicating bulls added positions. Last Friday night, the most-traded SHFE copper 2609 contract opened at 107,920 yuan/mt and fell to 107,650 yuan/mt early in the session. The center of copper prices then moved up sharply to a high of 108,320 yuan/mt, after which it stayed high and moved sideways within a narrow range, and finally closed at 108,200 yuan/mt, up 0.49%. Trading volume reached 26,000 lots, and open interest stood at 204,000 lots, down 815 lots from the previous trading day, indicating bulls reduced positions.

SMM August 14 At 11:30 today, the futures closing price was 108,250 yuan/mt, down 50 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. The average spot premium was -130 yuan/mt, up 15 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. Today, copper scrap prices remained unchanged from the previous trading day. The copper scrap sales sentiment index rose to 2.75, and the purchasing sentiment index fell to 1.82. The price difference between copper cathode and copper scrap was 4,561 yuan/mt, down 35 yuan/mt from the previous trading day. The price difference between copper cathode rod and secondary copper rod was 1,630 yuan/mt. According to the SMM survey, ahead of the weekend, copper prices pulled back. Secondary copper rod enterprises generally purchased as needed, while copper scrap suppliers, concerned about the risk of overseas copper prices pulling back over the weekend, preferred to focus on securing transactions during the day. As a result, secondary copper rod enterprises were able to purchase small quantities of low-priced material in the market.

[SMM Analysis: High Copper Prices Weigh on Demand as Payable for Copper Scrap Diverge]No.1 and No.2 copper materials came under greater pressure. Smelter maintenance, seasonal weakness in downstream demand and historically high copper prices led buyers to reduce procurement volumes and focus mainly on immediate production needs. By mid-August, No.1 copper payabilities had eased to around 96%-97%, while US No.2 copper materials traded near 95.5% and European No.2 copper materials around 94.5%-95%

[SMM Analysis: High Copper Prices Curb Demand, Copper Scrap Payable Indicators Diverge] No.1 and No.2 copper were affected by maintenance at some smelters, the consumption off-season, and high copper prices, which slowed down procurement demand and caused transaction payable indicators to pull back somewhat. As of mid-August, the payable indicator for No.1 copper transactions pulled back to around 96%-97%, with US No.2 copper at about 95.5% and European No.2 copper mainly at 94.5%-95%. In contrast, given still-tight supply and strong direct substitution properties for copper cathode, bare bright copper found notable downside support, and its quoted payable indicator held at a high of 98.5%-99% without visible loosening.