China Nov copper imports rise, output at record

* China's Nov copper imports up 10.3 pct on month * Imports of unwrought copper and semis at 290,158 tonnes * Unwrought aluminium, semis imports up 39.3 pct By Polly Yam HONG KONG, Dec 11 (Reuters) - China's copper imports rose in November, beating expectations as dealers anticipated a rise in demand next year in the surging economy, while domestic production hit a record. The rise in imports and output may be due to stockpiling on expectations of a surge in consumer demand later next month. "Some cash-rich importers could have imported more because of an expected rise in demand in late January when end-users would buy ahead of the Lunar New Year," Jing Chuan, chief researcher at Great Wall Futures, said. China's November imports, comprising anode, refined copper, alloy and semi-finished copper products, rose 10.3 percent to 290,158 tonnes in November, data released by the General Administration of Customs showed, beating expectations for a slight fall. To see a graphic on copper imports, click: http://graphics.thomsonreuters.com/129/CN_CPRIMP1209.gif Jing estimated refined copper imports alone at around 186,000 tonnes in November, up from October's 169,374 tonnes. Others agreed that the material was going into stores, but for a different reason, "I think the rise is about stockpiling rather than real consumption," said Mark Keenan, chief investment officer at Cubit Asset Management in Singapore. He said investors may have brought in more copper following the dollar's stabilisation since mid-November after a nine month slide. Production of refined copper rose 5.4 percent to 420,700 tonnes, a third straight record as smelters raced to meet annual output plans for the year. At the same time, demand has stayed steady and end-users had not been deterred by the 120 percent surge in prices seen so far this year, traders said. Official data released on Friday showed production of copper semis rose 3.9 percent from the previous month, to 887,900 tonnes in November, and of copper-contained power cables increased 6.4 percent to 2 million kilometres. ALUMINIUM Imports of primary aluminium, alloy and semi-finished aluminium products surged 39.3 percent to 120,674 tonnes in November after falling 56 percent in October. Contracted shipments booked during the middle of the year had arrived, traders said. They had expected the imports to fall since the domestic market had abundant supplies and LME prices had remained firm. But exports of unwrought primary aluminium and aluminium alloy fell 3.9 percent to 38,014 tonnes in November after a 19 percent rise in October. Output of primary aluminium hit a record for the third straight month at 1.35 million tonnes in November, up 5.4 percent from October, potentially adding to local stocks. China might have 1.2 million-1.5 million tonnes of aluminium stocks, Wen Xianjun, vice-chairman of the China Nonferrous Metals Industry Association, told a conference in late November. Demand appeared steady in November with production of semi-finished aluminium products rising 3.3 percent and aluminium alloy up 11.3 percent from October. (Editing by Nick Trevethan)