Top copper producer Chile produced 429,923 tonnes of copper in January, the lowest January output since 2011.

The Bureau of Statistics reported Monday that production fell 15% in January from December and 7.5% from January 2021, without giving a clear reason for the drop.

To be sure, Chilean production typically falls in the new year and will fluctuate depending on whether mines encounter higher or lower quality ore fractions. Water scarcity could also play a role in operations in central Chile after more than a decade of drought, said Juan Carlos Guajardo, head of consultancy Plusmining. Meanwhile, seasonal rains in the so-called highland winter could affect operations in some northern regions.