Chinese smelters failed to finalize the floor price for copper concentrate processing and refining charges in the third quarter

A person familiar with the matter said that this is the first time since the establishment of the China Copper Raw Materials Joint Negotiation Group (CSPT) in 2003 that the reserve price
has not been finalized.
The negotiating group currently has 10 member companies
.

CSPT members are required to hold a reserve price in any negotiations with copper miners, offsetting the ore price
paid by the smelter to the miner.
TC/RCs are fees
paid by miners to smelters to smelt copper concentrates into refined copper.
However, two people familiar with the matter, who could not be named, said that the CSPT meeting in Manzhouli, Inner Mongolia, discussed market fundamentals but failed to finalize the TC/RC floor
.

CSPT member companies meet every three months to finalize the floor price
of TC/RCs.
Members of the negotiating team include large domestic smelters
such as Tongling Nonferrous Metals Group, Jiangxi Copper and Jinchuan Group.
Meetings are usually held in Shanghai, not Inner Mongolia, one of
the country's largest mining regions.

As this Sunday enters the third quarter, during which TC/RCs will not be finalized and a new floor price is lacking, a second person familiar with the matter said, "Each company will buy copper concentrate according to market conditions
.
" ”

The floor price for processing and refining fees in the second quarter was finalized at $78 per ton and 7.
8 cents per pound, respectively, the lowest level
since at least 2015.
In the third quarter of last year, TC/RCs were $86 per ton and 8.
6 cents per pound, respectively
.