Ann: Quarterly Activities Report - March Qtr 2019, page-108

Top Copper Miner Says Price Slump Won't Last for Long

• World’s largest copper miner advises market bears - the downtrend in prices won’t last long.
• While copper tracks towards it biggest weekly loss since August following weaker factory gauges in China and the US fueled demand concerns, fears aren’t grounded on fundamentals, Codelco Chief Commercial Officer Roberto Ecclefield said.
• The Chilean state-run miner has been receiving requests from traders and customers who want to buy additional supply of refined copper for the second half of this year and into next year. The company forecast 2.3% consumption growth in 2019, while mine production is slipping 0.5%.
• Supply disruptions, including rains in Chile and protests in Peru kept the market in deficit, even as demand for concentrate, eased up as a result of a four-month stoppage at two of Codelco’s four smelters, Ecclefield said.
• Codelco expects shortages to worsen in the second half of the year, with less copper concentrate in the market and more smelting capacity available.

https://www.bloomberg.com/news/arti...-says-slump-in-price-of-metal-won-t-last-long