Antofagasta CEO: Copper Surplus to Disappear in 2015

According to a report from Reuters, Antofagasta’s (LSE:ANTO) new CEO, Ivan Arriagada, sees the surplus in the copper market disappearing this year. That prediction comes on the back of issues with production output in the copper space.

As quoted in the publication:

Analysts had anticipated seeing the first surplus in years in 2015, to the tune of 500,000 to 600,000 tonnes copper, but production stoppages, such as those caused by recent heavy rains and mudslides in northern Chile, have curtailed those estimates.

“What we’ve seen is that the surplus has been disappearing and we’re probably talking about a market that is virtually in balance,” Ivan Arriagada told Reuters in one of his first media interviews since assuming as CEO in February.

Antofagasta’s flagship Los Pelambres mine in central Chile lost 8,500 tonnes of refined copper production earlier this year after protests by local villagers blocked access to the mining complex.

Click here to read the full Reuters article.