Reuters reported that JX Nippon Mining & Metals Company of Japan is seeking to almost double the term treatment and refining charges to USD 80 per tonne next year.

Mr Masanori Okada president of Japan said that TC and RCs are the fees paid by miners to smelters to process copper concentrates into refined copper and are deducted from the final sale price based on London Metal Exchange copper prices CMCU3.

He said that we're targeting to fetch $80 for next year as spot charges have risen sharply. TC and RCs tend to rise when the amount of copper ore they produce is plentiful or when the operating capacity of smelters declines. The fees have been under pressure for years.

Three month copper on the LME CMCU3 traded at USD 8,204.50 per tonne at 1323 GMT. The red metal which is used in power and construction hit an all time high at USD 8,966 earlier this month.

(Sourced from Reuters)