The Chinese debt crisis and you. "Copper has long played an important role in China’s economy. Currently, China is the world’s biggest importer of copper by some margin, accounting for 43% of global copper ore imports – more than three times the level of Japan in second place."
The Importance of Copper In China’s Economy | Paid for and posted by CME Group (reuters.com)
Around 23% of China's copper end-use comes from civil and building construction.
We're talking about 10% of global copper demand loss if development were to stop entirely in China. However, if only half of the current projects resume, even that would depress copper prices unless other uses fail to take up supply. The point is that resolution of Chinese debt could have significant impact on copper prices. To my mind that is reason enough to follow developments there.
b.