Aurubis: Euro-zone Issues Not Enough To Justify Copper Slide

The euro zone doesn't represent a significant enough demand component of the copper market to justify such a large slide in copper prices, Aurubis AG (NDA.XE) said Thursday.

According to Aurubis, the six core European Union countries with annual copper demand of 200,000 metric tons or more--Germany, Italy, Spain, Poland, Belgium and France--collectively only account for 2.8 million tons of copper demand each year, or 14% of total global demand.

"The demand dynamics of these countries have been rather moderate in the past as well, especially compared to those of China and other newly industrialized countries," Aurubis, Europe's largest copper producer, said in a monthly report.

Demand from China, instead, is the key, said Aurubis.

"If a change in demand were to drive down the price, then it would be here," it said.

The Chinese copper market will likely account for 8.4 million tons of copper demand in 2012, following an 8% increase in demand growth last year, said Aurubis.

Momentum is likely to ramp up in the construction sector this year, as the Chinese government pushes infrastructure investments in order to counteract the economic slow-down, it said.

"At this time, it would therefore be short-sighted to be guided only by daily events and to look only at Europe. It is likely that the copper prices will level off again," Aurubis said.

Euro-zone jitters have seen the price of copper tumble around 10% so far this month. In Wednesday's session alone, the London Metal Exchange's three-month copper contract slid 3% to a 2012 low at $7,503 a ton. At 0922 GMT Thursday, LME three-month copper was up 0.7% on the day at $7,587.25/ton.

-By Francesca Freeman, Dow Jones Newswires; [phone]; [e-mail]