Glencore Xstrata and Anglo American's Chilean Copper Mine Surging Back

After a troubled 2012, Chilean copper mine Collahuasi is now seeing a massive rebound. “The mine will remain focused on sustaining…before unshelving expansion plans designed to double output, CEO Jorge Gomez told Reuters, as the industry braces for a big surplus next year that many worry could hurt prices.”

The mine “has been plagued by lower ore grades, extreme weather and accidents that sent its output tumbling roughly 37 percent last year. But…appears to have roared back, with production soaring 43 percent to 297,340 tonnes in the first 9 months of this year.”

“In a very short period of time, Collahuasi has had a surprising turnabout in its results,” Gomez told Reuters in a rare interview. “Currently our strategic focus is the stabilization of the operation, which means fulfilling our business objectives.”

With a decline of 0.5 percent on the LME to $7,180 per metric ton on Thursday, October 17, the copper 3-month price recorded the biggest decline of the day. Also on the LME, the primary copper cash price fell 0.4 percent to $7,158 per metric ton.

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Weakening prices followed two days of improvement as the Japanese copper cash price dropped 0.3 percent. The price of US copper producer grade 122 ended a two-day climb. The price of US copper producer grade 102 flattened after two days of improvement. Following a two-day rise, the price of US copper producer grade 110 flattened.

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Chinese copper closed mixed yesterday. After improving for two days, the price of Chinese copper bar declined 0.2 percent. The Chinese copper cash price closed. Following a couple days of improvement, the metal’s price weakened by 0.2 percent. The price of Chinese copper wire remained essentially flat. The price of Chinese bright copper scrap saw little movement.