Copper futures advanced in London and New York on Wednesday on hopes of rising demand, but prices in Shanghai fell on fears of policy tightening by top consumer China.

China's copper and aluminum smelting capacity will remain relatively stable over the next five years.

He Jinbi believes as top consumer China builds metals-intensive renewable energy and electric vehicle infrastructure, copper and other base metals will see serious supply deficits in future.

Of the union affiliates, 98.5% voted to reject the offer on a new contract for the next 36 months.

The bizarre case highlights commodity traders’ vulnerability to fraud, even when security and inspection controls are in place.

Shares of major miners also fell in London trading, with BHP down 2.4%, Rio Tinto down 3.6%, Glencore -2.44%, and Antofagasta -1.25%.

Overall, the picture that emerges from the commodity import data is that China is at best ticking along.

Cobalt and lithium have jumped back to life in 2021, with prices rallying hard in January and February.