China Copper Smelters to Cut 2016 Output as Prices Tumble
- Reduction accounts for 4.4 percent of China's 2014 output
- Zinc, nickel smelters in China have already pledged cuts
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Copper smelters in China joined the nation’s zinc and nickel manufacturers in agreeing to cut output as producers of the industrial metals struggle to cope with declines in prices to the lowest levels in six years or more.
Copper suppliers including Jiangxi Copper Co. and Tongling Nonferrous Metals Group Co. pledged to reduce output next year by 350,000 metric tons after a meeting in Shanghai, according to a statement from 10 smelters. That’s about 4.4 percent of China’s annual output in 2014, based on National Bureau of Statistics figures. The country contributes almost a quarter of world refined copper supply, according to Bloomberg Intelligence.