BHP Billiton Limited (BHP.AX)

Copper smelters in leading buyer China wary of BHP-Anglo American tie-up

Chinese smelters, the world's biggest buyers of mined copper, are concerned they will lose power to negotiate prices if BHP Group, known locally as "the big miner", succeeds in its bid for rival Anglo American. "This is not good news for China given the heavy reliance on external supply, and Chinese companies hold limited resources," Zhang Weixin, a metal analyst at China Futures, said of the potential tie-up. The China Smelters Purchase Team (CSPT), a group of top smelters that negotiates with miners on yearly prices to treat and refine copper, has no current plans to urge Beijing to investigate the deal, three sources familiar with the matter said.