Sumitomo Metal Mining To Set Up Copper Vendor In China -Nikkei

Sumitomo Metal Mining To Set Up Copper Vendor In China -Nikkei
Staff Reporters
MetalSource Non-Ferrous Metals News

TOKYO (Nikkei)--Sumitomo Metal Mining Co. (5713.TO) plans to establish its first overseas copper ingot sales company in Shanghai next spring to drum up customers from among the electric wire and semiconductor producers in China, The Nikkei reported early Friday.
The company will set up the new firm by assembling sales representatives currently dispersed among five Chinese plants that make semiconductor lead frames with copper. In addition to selling electronic materials, these sales representatives will begin selling copper ingots. Sumitomo Metal Mining will also continue its dealings with trading firms.
Copper ingots are an international commodity with little variance in specifications among customers. However, because production volumes are determined based on demand forecasts, analyzing the market in China, which accounts for 40% of world copper consumption, has become vital.
Sumitomo Metal Mining's only copper smelter is in Japan. It has been consigning export negotiations to trading firms, but this has left it unable to adequately grasp market trends. With Japanese demand sluggish, exports to China and elsewhere now account for half of the smelter's shipping volume.