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Chinese nonferrous metals association calls for more discipline in copper smelting

China's copper market need to offer leading priority to regulate smelting capacity to avoid competitive growth and blind competition, an industry authorities stated on Thursday, calling for more discipline in smelting.

Copper smelters in China, representing almost 50% of worldwide refined copper output, have been facing tightened accessibility of raw material, which was intensified by the rapid expansion in smelting capacity.

Copper smelting capability has actually been broadening too fast in current years, Ge Honglin, chairman of the state-backed China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association (CNIA), was pointed out as stating in a state metals industry news outlet late on Thursday.

Chinese smelters have been quickly broadening their capacity over the previous year on the anticipation of a surge in copper need stimulated by the green energy shift.

Smelters ought to fully gain from the successful experience of the supply-side reform in the aluminum industry to effectively manage the copper smelting capability before an outright excess, stated Ge.

Copper miners and Chinese smelters will work out the annual treatment and refining charges (TC/RCs) for 2025 in November when the CRU World Copper Conference Asia will be holding.

TC/RCs, a key source of profits for smelters, are paid by miners when they sell concentrate, or semi-processed ore, to be fine-tuned into metal.

The standard for 2024 was set at $80 a metric lot and 8 cents per pound last year.

(source: Reuters)