%{{tag.tag}} {{articledata.title}} {{moment(articledata.cdate)}} @{{articledata.company.replace(" ","")}} comment China’s %Copper smelters have agreed to jointly reduce their production as they struggle with a shortage of raw materials, according to multiple media reports. The Reuters news agency is reporting that no specific rate or volume reductions have been set, and that it will be up to each individual smelter to determine its production cut. The production decrease comes as the price of copper falls to its lowest level in more than a decade, currently trading at $3.99 U.S. per pound, the same level it was at in 2012. China’s top copper producers, Jiangxi Copper, Tongling Nonferrous Metals Group, and China Copper have each agreed to the production cuts at their smelters. The production cuts mark a big reversal for Chinese smelters, which had previously expanded their capacity on expectations of rising demand for copper related to the green energy transition that involves electric vehicles and solar energy. However, demand for electric vehicles and solar power has dropped among price sensitive consumers and comes while several mine disruptions, including a shutdown at the large Cobre mine in Panama, has left copper concentrate in short supply. China's refined copper output in the first two months of this year rose 9.2% to 1.75 million metric tons, according to data from research firm Antaike. Imports of copper concentrate from mines around the world came in at 4.66 million tons in January and February, up 0.6% compared to the same period of 2023. The most widely traded copper contract on the Shanghai Futures market rose to a 22-month high on news of the smelter production cuts.