China Cuts Copper Scrap Import Quotas by 94%

SEATTLE (Scrap Monster): The official data published by Chinese administration at the conclusion of first two rounds of solid waste import licenses for 2018 suggests that copper scrap import licenses has tumbled sharply by more than 94% year-on-year.

As per data, Beijing has cut its quota for copper scrap import to 136,685 tonnes in the first two rounds of licenses. This is drastically down by 94.3%, when matched with 2,397,565 tonnes approved during the first two rounds in 2017. The number of refiners applying for licenses has seen notable decline in 2018, mainly due to uncertainties with regards to regulation changes for 2018 announced during mid-December 2017. As per new regulation, only end-users are allowed to apply for import licenses for scrap that fall under the category of “restricted imports”.

Traditionally, Guangdong province accounts for nearly 50% of all copper scrap imports by China. However, 2018 data suggests that the province did not receive any import license during the first two rounds. Out of the 25 companies which received copper scrap import licenses so far, 24 belonged to Zhejiang province. The only company from outside the Zhejiang province to receive the license was Gem Recycling from Jiangxi province.

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The three companies in Zhejiang province to top the approved tonnage for 2018 in the first two rounds were Taizhou Chiho-Tiande Metal (65,000 tonnes), Judong Limited (30,000 tonnes) and Changqing Secondary Resources (8,000 tonnes). When compared with the approved volumes during corresponding two rounds in 2017, these companies reported 84.5%, 60% and 83.7% decline respectively.

Meantime, Chinese copper scrap imports dropped significantly by more than 17% over the previous year to total 271,000 tonnes in November 2017. The country’s cumulative imports during the first eleven months of the year totaled 3.294 million tonnes, higher by 9% when matched with the corresponding eleven-month period in 2016. The refined copper production has surged higher by 10% in November with full year production in 2017 set to outclass 2016 total. Also, refined copper imports declined during the month, whereas copper concentrate imports recorded growth.

Incidentally, copper prices have rallied almost 30% during the entire year 2017.