China's Refined-Copper Imports Decline in June, Customs Reports...

China's Refined-Copper Imports Decline in June, Customs Reports

By Xiao Yu and Glenys Sim

July 16 (Bloomberg) -- China's copper imports, the biggest in the world, fell 6.1 percent in June from May as rising prices made shipments of the metal unprofitable.

Refined copper and alloy imports were 121,991 metric tons last month, the Beijing-based customs office said in a statement today, citing preliminary data. This compares with 129,949 tons in May and 69,715 tons in June 2006, according to Bloomberg data.

Imports in the first half more than doubled to 998,077 tons, compared with a year earlier, the customs data showed.

To contact the reporters on this story: Xiao Yu in Beijing at [email protected] ; Glenys Sim in Singapore at [email protected]

Last Updated: July 15, 2007 21:23 EDT