China’s 2025 steel demand to fall 1.5% on year, state research institute says
China's steel consumption in 2024 and 2025 is forecast at 863 million metric tons and 850 million tons, respectively.
Copper price rose to the highest in two weeks on Tuesday as China announced a major step towards further easing of its covid containment policy.
China will stop requiring inbound travelers to go into quarantine starting from Jan. 8, moving further away from a strict “zero-covid” policy that has curbed industrial activity and domestic demand.
Copper for delivery in March rose 3.7% on the Comex market in New York, touching $3.94 per pound or $8,668 per tonne.
[Click here for an interactive chart of copper prices]
The most-traded February copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose as much as 1.3% to 66,660 yuan ($9,576.21) a tonne in early trade, its strongest since Dec. 14.
“Overall, the current macro environment is relatively favorable for copper prices,” Huatai Futures analysts wrote in a note.
Supply concerns could keep traders cautious, analysts said, as customs clearance in Shanghai has slowed down due to rising COVID case numbers.
(With files from Reuters)
