China's demand picks up Shanghai copper rose to a more than three-week high

Copper prices rose 3.
7% this week, the third straight week of gains, and the biggest gain since the week of June 8
, 2018.
However, due to the new crown pneumonia crisis, copper prices fell by 17.
1%
during the year.

Jefferies said in a report that China's demand fell at first due to the pandemic, but now that infrastructure projects are moving forward, factories are restarting, construction activity is accelerating, traffic congestion is increasing, and pollution is increasing, all of which indicate that China's demand is clearly rising from a very low base, adding that the early demand shock may now turn into a "larger supply shock"
.
Jefferies expects a total of 2.
4 million tonnes of copper production capacity (12% of global copper supply) to be temporarily closed
due to pandemic-related restrictions.

The London Metal Exchange (LME) is closed on Friday and next Monday due to the Easter holiday
.
Shanghai copper rose as much as 2.
6 percent to 41,890 yuan a tonne, the highest since March 1, and closed at 41,790 yuan
.

China's industrial producer price index (PP) fell 1.
5% year-on-year in March, the biggest decline since October 2019, according to data released by the National Bureau of Statistics, indicating that the economy is still some way from
achieving a lasting recovery.

China's refined copper production rose 2.
6 percent month-on-month to 665,000 mt in March, research firm Antaike said, as downstream user demand recovered and higher processing refining fees boosted operating rates
.

Australian mining company MMG Ltd has declared force majeure for supply of Las Bambas copper mine in Peru, four sources said on Thursday
.