Many China copper traders halt US scrap imports on tariff fears

Many Chinese metal importers have stopped buying US copper scrap in anticipation of tariffs when Donald Trump assumes the presidency, according to Beijing Antaike Information Development Co.

The purchases were halted from mid-November because those cargoes are likely to arrive around the time Trump takes office on Jan. 20, the state-owned researcher said in a note, citing its survey of traders.

The president-elect has threatened to impose 60 per cent tariffs on all Chinese imports, which would likely spur retaliatory action from Beijing. The world’s two biggest economies engaged in a tit-for-tat trade war during Trump’s first term, with China imposing duties of 25 per cent on copper scrap from the US. Tensions ratcheted higher on Monday as Washington slapped fresh curbs on China’s access to components for chips and AI.

Scrap metal was used as a feedstock for about 30 per cent of copper production last year, according to the China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association. Around a fifth of the country’s scrap copper imports in the first 10 months of the year came from the US, government data show.

The potential loss of imports from the US comes as China’s copper smelters are already dealing with a shortage of scrap metal due to the unintended impact of a change to local governments’ tax rebate policy.

Halting purchases from the US will tighten China’s copper scrap supplies and boost demand for refined copper, potentially spurring volatility in prices and processing fees, Beijing Antaike said.

Copper declined 0.1 per cent to $8,982 a ton on the London Metal Exchange as of 12:02 p.m. in Shanghai. It’s retreated by almost 20 per cent from a record high in May on a strengthening dollar and slowing Chinese demand. Aluminum dropped 0.3 per cent and zinc lost 0.7 per cent.

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