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Last Updated: Jun 29, 2009 - 8:37:06 AM |
According to an industry report released by The International Copper
Study Group (ICSG), world refined copper output in January to March
reached 4.382 mt, while consumption totaled 4.335 mt.
"In the first quarter of 2009, world usage decreased by 4% compared to
that in the first quarter of 2008. Had it not been for a very high
apparent usage in China, the decline would have exceeded 10%," ICSG
said.
The report said that Chinese apparent usage grew by 36% (as net imports
of refined copper almost doubled to about 750,000t), partially
offsetting a decrease of 19% in the rest of the world.
Markets were particularly weak in the EU-15 countries, Japan, and the
USA, where usage decreased by 25%, 46%, and 27%, respectively. These
three regions currently represent around 30% of the world total copper
usage.
World mine production grew by 1.6% (57,000t) in the first quarter of
2009 compared with that in the same period of 2008, when operational
problems led to reduced production.
However, owing to production constraints and intentional
cuts/shut-downs, mine production remained well below available capacity
with capacity utilisation falling to around 77%, compared with an
average of 87% over the past 5 years.
The main contributors to mine production growth were Indonesia and
Peru, with mine production declining in Australia, Chile and China.
Source:Ocnus.net 2009
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