The Peruvian National Federation of Mining Workers, declaring an indefinite strike in protest of government-planned labor reform, began inactive on Tuesday.
The National Society for Mining, Oil, and Energy (SNMPE) called this a failure, saying that mines operate normally throughout the entire South American country.
Similar actions by unions in 2017 also had a limited impact, but any continued violation can affect the metal markets, given that Peru is the second largest producer of copper, silver and zinc in the world, the fourth largest producer of lead and the sixth largest producer of gold and tin.
Peru's copper production last year exceeded 2.4 million tons, and silver production exceeded 100 million ounces. Zinc production totaled just over 1.3 million tons.
There are a total of 123 mining mines in Peru, and six more are under construction. The country has some of the world's largest copper mines, including Cerro Verde in Freeport, Antamina BHP-Glencore and Las Bambas, owned by China Minmetals.
