Refined copper inventories at Chinas bonded warehouses totaled 600,000 mt at the end of July, up 3.4% from a month earlier, amid higher copper imports in the past seven months, brokerage Huatai Futures said in a commodity report Tuesday. 

China imported 3.09 million mt of refined copper and copper products in the first seven months of this year, up 19.5% year on year, figures from the General Administration of Customs showed. 

The current slack traditional copper buying season in mainland China results in continued weak demand in the domestic spot market, state-owned metals consultancy Beijing Antaike said in its copper sector report Tuesday. 

Spot copper supply was ample Tuesday, with suppliers active but forced to cut premiums to boost sales, the agency said. 

Bonded cargoes are used as collateral for seeking funds from financial institutions for financing needs, according to Huatai Futures. 

Bonded copper is copper that has been approved by customs to enter China, without paying tax, and is stored, processed and re-exported, according to the General Administration of Customs. 

Bonded warehouses in China are located in Shanghai, East China, as well as Guangdong Province in southern China.