Copper Glut Fades on Mine Cuts as China Buys Stockpiles
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Copper mines from Australia to Zambia are confounding forecasters as slumping prices and mine disruptions threaten to erase a global production surplus.
Companies including BHP Billiton Ltd and Rio Tinto Group have reported accidents and equipment breakdowns while announcing 2015 spending cuts that Macquarie Group Ltd. estimates at $20 billion. The unexpected reductions mean mines may produce less, with any excess absorbed by expanding government stockpiles in China, the top user, Bloomberg surveys of analysts showed.