Flat Cu Scrap Export Price from Tokyo

Copper scrap dealers’ purchase price for export is flat around Tokyo due to thin demand from importers in China. The market price is around 250-260 yen per kilogram for brass scrap with small portion of steel and other metals and around 160-170 yen for electric wire scrap with 40-42% copper unit.

Japanese copper scrap export plunged since mid-April. The export was 32,541 tonnes in May, down by 36% from the previous month when China, which represents 90% of Japanese scrap export, stopped the aggressive buying. The export volume was 50,967 tonnes in April, which hit historical monthly high. The purchase by China has not recovered.

International copper price remains high. The monthly averaged price at London Metal Exchange is expected to reach more than US$ 5,000 for the first time in 9 months. The exporters try to reflect the surge of primary copper ingot to export price. However, Chinese importer would not purchase if the price is high, an exporter source said.

The purchase price by exporters is 270-285 yen per kilogram for brass scrap with small portion of steel and other metals while electric wire scrap is around 180-190 yen and mixed scrap is 38-43 yen.