Chile has lowered its price guidance for copper by 45¢/lb to $2.40/lb due to COVID-19’s impact on the Chilean copper industry. In January, copper prices from Chile were projected to increase by 13¢/lb from 2019 to $2.85/lb.
Copper prices are also expected to decrease in 2021 to $2.90/lb, 5¢/lb lower than forecasted in January, Chilean Copper Commission (Cochilco) indicated in a statement on Friday.
Prices for copper have fallen since the beginning of the year with the spread of COVID-19, Chile’s mining minister, Baldo Prokurica, said, adding that the Chilean copper industry will see the pandemic’s impact on the red metal during the second and third quarter of 2020.
Global copper production is expected to fall by 1.2pc (255,000mt less) this year compared to 2019, while global demand could decrease by 1.7pc (417,000mt less) compared to last year according to Cochilco estimates. Additionally, lower copper output will be recorded in Peru, China, and Australia while production in Chile is expected to reach 5.87mn mt this year.
Chile copper production rose by 8.3pc in February to 451,580mt compared the same month last year, according to the latest figures from the National Statistical Institute (INE).