Zambia Cuts 2015 Copper Output Forecast Up to 26%, Minister Says
- Output won't be `very much beyond 600,000 tons': Chikwanda
- Zambia budgets average $5,000/ton copper price for 2016
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Zambia cut its copper output forecast for this year by as much as 26 percent as prices trade near six-year lows and a power shortage curbs production, Finance Minister Alexander Chikwanda said.
Africa’s second-biggest producer of the metal is struggling to meet half of peak electricity demand at a time when mines, including Glencore Plc’s local unit, have announced the suspension of local operations. Zambia depends on copper exports for 70 percent of its exports, and the kwacha has fallen 46 percent against the dollar this year, the biggest drop among 155 currencies tracked by Bloomberg.