Japanese copper smelters' H2 output seen rising 5.5% y/y

Mitsubishi Materials

08/10/2024 09:57

By Yuka Obayashi
       TOKYO, Oct 8 (Reuters) - Japan's refined copper
production in the second half of fiscal 2025 is expected to rise
5.5% from a year earlier, Reuters calculations from plans
outlined by smelters showed, due to reduced maintenance
activities and solid demand.
    The financial second half falls between October and March.
    Japan's biggest copper supplier Pan Pacific Copper (PPC)
expects its second-half supply to rise after a drop a year
earlier caused by scheduled renovation work at the Hitachi
Refinery in eastern Japan, a company spokesperson said.
    PPC, jointly owned by JX Advanced Metals, Mitsui Mining and
Smelting  5706.T  and Marubeni  8002.T , outsources smelting and
refining operations to its parent companies' plants. It procures
raw materials and sells the refined metals. 
    The company sees solid demand from local electronics parts
and construction sectors, the spokesperson added.
    Sumitomo Metal Mining (SMM)  5713.T  also expects a 21% rise
in second-half output following a two-month maintenance shutdown
at its Toyo Smelter & Refinery in western Japan between
September and November last year, a company spokesperson said. 
    In March, the Japan Copper and Brass Association projected a
5.9% increase in domestic demand for copper products in fiscal
2025, citing an expected recovery in the automobile and chip
industries that will drive demand for plates and strips, copper
tubes, and brass bars. 
    The Japan Electric Wire & Cable Makers' Association (JCMA)
has also forecast 2% growth in domestic copper wire shipments in
the current year, helped by a resurgence in the semiconductor
industry and robust export demand.
    Below are the production plans of base metals in metric tons
for October to March by key suppliers PPC, Mitsubishi Materials
 5711.T , SMM, Furukawa  5715.T , Dowa Holdings  5714.T , Mitsui
Mining and Smelting  5706.T , Nittetsu Mining  1515.T  and Toho
Zinc  5707.T .
    The table shows comparisons against planned or estimated
production in metric tons in the first half of the 2024/25
financial year and actual output in the second half of the
2023/24 year that ended on March 31, with year-on-year
percentage changes for the second half of 2024/25.
    
               H2         H1         H2         
               FY2024/25  FY2024/25  FY2023/24  y/y
                                                
 COPPER                                         
                                                
 Pan Pacific     303,700    305,500    291,000      4.4
 Mitsubishi      196,578    225,294    208,380     -5.7
 SMM             227,000    227,000    187,020     21.4
 Furukawa         22,890     23,301   　23,301      -1.8
 Dowa             4,183      3,747      4,054       3.2
 Nittetsu        24,327     24,776     24,605      -1.1
 TOTAL          778,678    809,618     738,360      5.5
                                                       
 ZINC                                           
                                                
 Mitsui         119,100    103,200    112,500       5.9
 Dowa           107,670      89,830     92,545     16.3
 Toho Zinc       26,300      30,100     41,423    -36.5
 TOTAL          253,070    223,130    246,468       2.7
                                                       
 LEAD                                           
                                                
 Toho Zinc       42,700      45,087    41,183       3.7
 Mitsui          35,600     33,100     37,600      -5.3
 Mitsubishi      14,976      15,090    15,162      -1.2
 Dowa              5,960     4,116      6,144      -3.0
 TOTAL           99,236      97,393   100,089      -0.9
                                                       
 NICKEL                                         
                                                
 SMM             32,000     31,100      30,787      3.9
                                                       
 FERRONICKEL                                    
                                                
 SMM               2,200     2,100       1,848     19.0
 
 (Reporting by Yuka Obayashi)
 ((Yuka.Obayashi@thomsonreuters.com; +813-4520-1265;))