Tight copper concentrate supply in the world market may result in lower midyear benchmark copper treatment and refining charges for Japanese smelters, sources familiar the biannual negotiations said. International miners engaged in the current midyear negotiations with Japanese smelters are from BHP Billiton Ltd.'s Escondida mine in Chile, Canada's Highland Valley mine jointly owned by BHP Billiton and Teck Cominco Ltd., and Papua New Guinea's OK Tedi mine. Current tight market conditions are also likely to drag the negotiations, started last week, into July or later, as international miners are asking for much lower TCs and RCs, the sources said. "Miners are asking for TCs in the level of 61 dollars-69 dollars a metric ton. But smelters think current level around 70 dollars/ton is low enough," a Tokyo-based source said.
NSTL
