Trade trends and competition intensity of international copper flow based on complex network: From the perspective of industry chain

Abstract

With the increasing demand for resources, the opening and stability of the key mineral industry chain have become a key area of national security. As an important key mineral, copper is widely used in the national economic construction and defense industry. This leads to fierce competition and a complex flow relationship between copper resource trading countries. Based on the perspective of the industrial chain, this paper constructs a model of the copper resource trade evolution network and trade competition network from 2001 to 2020 and analyzes the temporal, spatial evolution, and competitive characteristics of trade. The main conclusions are as follows: (1) Since 2001, the global trade of copper resources has fluctuated greatly, trade competition is very intense, and the demand for copper has continued to increase. Copper ore is the most important trade, followed by refined copper, copper product, waste copper, and blister copper. (2) Copper resources have different characteristics at different stages of the industrial chain. Refined copper trade relations are the most concentrated. The copper product trade is the most stable. Community division presents different characteristics. (3) Trade relations and trade volume are highly concentrated in a few countries, and competition is unevenly distributed. Competitive relations are mainly concentrated in European and Asian countries, within Asian countries or European countries. (4) The Asia-Pacific region has reached a dominant position in the copper resource competition pattern, especially between China and Japan. Finally, this article provides some suggestions to maintain the stability of the copper resource trade and improve the ability to resist risks for China.