Volatile Copper Price Reduces Rolled Product Output in February

Japanese domestic production of copper fabricated products decreased by 0.2% to 84,950 tonnes in February from a year earlier, which represented year-to-year decrease for the first time since November 2005, according to Japan Copper and Brass Association. Brass bar production represented year-to-year decrease for 2 months in a row, while copper tube production showed year-to-year decrease for the first time in 9 months. Copper product users seemed to reduce their purchasing volume as much as immediate demand when copper price fluctuated widely and frequently. Copper product demand also seemed to become slower for semiconductor related applications.Japanese domestic output of copper fabricated products tends to decrease since November 2006, even though there were less operating days in February. The demand decreased due to the volatile copper price, which continued increasing after temporary decline to below 700,000 yen per tonne in February. Copper product users regulated their purchasing volume just as much as immediate usage and copper fabricated product demand became slower.