Major talking points among copper market participants attending the annual LME Asia Week in Hong Kong this week are whether Chinese copper demand for April and May is weaker compared with previous years and when high domestic copper stocks in China will decrease.
Sustained high copper stocks in the Shanghai-bonded zone have fueled market worries that copper demand in China is foundering and that the traditional peak consumption season in 2019 will be delayed. Fastmarkets MB assessed Shanghai-bonded copper stocks at 572,000-576,000 tonnes on Monday May 6, rising by 9,000 tonnes or 1.6% from 563,000-567,000 tonnes recorded on March 25. Yet compared with the rapid rise in stocks over February and March this year, when stocks rose by 27.4% to the March 25 level from 441,000-446,000 tonnes on February 11, stock movements in the bonded zone have stabilized in April and May, according to Fastmarkets data. And traders who sell material into the downstream market said during LME Asia Week that Chinese copper demand is stable compared with previous years, adding...