China's imports of refined copper amounted to 47,000 tons in May, down 60.7 percent from the same month a year ago, according to data from China's General Administration of Customs.

Customs said in the first five months of this year, China imported 324,000 tons of refined copper, down 41.6 percent year on year.

Despite the decline in imports, China's domestic copper supply was sufficient due to increased copper production and decreased demand, China Business News quoted market analysts as saying on Tuesday.

From January to May, China's copper output increased by 220,000 tons compared with the same period of 2005. Industry insiders attributed the decreased copper imports to the price gap between domestic and international markets, predicting that China's imports of copper would continue falling in June.

(Xinhua News Agency June 28, 2006)