Copper group Antofagasta agrees spot index-linked sales of copper concentrates

Chilean copper mining group Antofagasta has, according to reports, settled a spot index-linked sale of copper concentrates. This is unusual, as Antofagasta ordinarily sell at set levels rather than floating, spot-linked sales. The company is the de facto negotiator of copper concentrate benchmark treatment charges/refining charges (TCs/RCs), so this update may have significant implications. A decline in importance of the benchmark system would increase focus on spot TCs at a time when the spot market is increasingly tight and the spread between long-term and spot TCs is growing.