(07/11) Codelco Raises Japan, Korea Copper Charges for 2010

November 07, 2009

Codelco, the world’s biggest copper producer, will raise the surcharge on sales to Japan and South Korea by as much as 16 percent next year as demand from China lifts metal prices.

The premium will be $74 a metric ton in 2010 versus $65 this year for Japan and $64 for South Korea, said two company executives who received a copy of the notice. The charges are added to London immediate-delivery prices to reflect regional supply and demand and to cover shipping and insurance costs.

Copper, used in pipes and power cables, has more than doubled in London this year as China’s 4 trillion yuan ($586 billion) stimulus spending and state stockpiling boosted the country’s imports to a record.
Southern Copper Corp., the largest producer in Peru and Mexico, forecast this month that prices may rise to $4 a pound next year because of recovering economic growth in the U.S. and Europe and a lack of new supply. The December-delivery contract on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange closed at $2.9525 a pound yesterday.