Japan Rolled Copper Output Drops by 6.1% in November

Japanese rolled copper output deceased by 6.1% to 85,430 tonnes in November from a year earlier, which deceased for 10 months in a row, announced by Japan Copper and Brass Association on Wednesday. The copper tube output decreased for the first time in the year and the copper strip output decreased for the first time in 4 months. The brass bar output was still low level. The output didn’t recover when the users minimized the purchase volume with uncertainty for copper ingot price. The copper tube output decreased by 16.3% to 12,472 tonnes in November from a year earlier. The drop was wider than 9.8% decrease in October when the demand is slow for gas equipment and air conditioner. The industry concerns potential demand decrease caused by very slow building activity with confusion for new building standard law. The brass bar output decreased by 10% to 19,491 tonnes in November from a year earlier, which decreased to less than 20,000 tonnes for the first time in 2 months and decreased for 11 months in a row. The output was low level with slower demand for gas equipment, valve, water tap fittings and parts for floor heating. The copper strip output decreased by 1.9% to 24,332 tonnes in November from a year earlier. The output was relative high level due to firm demand for connector pin of automobile and recovering demand for semiconductor though the output was lower than the level in November 2006 with strong demand for lead frame for semiconductor.