* May arrivals of unwrought copper, products -8% m\/m at 445,725 T<\/p>\n
* London copper prices hit all-time high near $10,750 last month<\/p>\n
* Copper ore imports at 1.95 mln T; aluminium exports at 439,097 T (Adds bullets, detail on copper premiums in para 5, graphic)<\/p>\n
June 7 (Reuters) – China\u2019s copper imports fell 8% in May from the previous month, customs data showed on Monday, as record-high prices further eroded buying interest in the world\u2019s top consumer of the metal.<\/p>\n
Imports of unwrought copper and copper products were 445,725 tonnes in May, the General Administration of Customs said. That was down from 484,890 tonnes in April for a second straight month-on-month drop but up from 436,030 tonnes in May 2020.<\/p>\n
Benchmark London copper prices rose 4.4% last month, hitting an all-time peak of $10,747.50 a tonne on May 10. Prices have hovered at uncomfortably high levels for consumers for most of this year, fuelled by a post-lockdown resurgence in demand and easing liquidity globally.<\/p>\n
Growth in China\u2019s manufacturing sector, a key copper consuming sector, slowed slightly in May as raw materials costs rose at their fastest pace in over a decade.<\/p>\n
Underscoring low buying interest, the closely watched Yangshan copper premium <\/span>SMM-CUYP-CN<\/span>, paid on top of London prices for delivery of physical copper into China, is at its lowest since 2016 at $28 a tonne.<\/span><\/p>\n