Copper hits record high as tight supply, US tariff fears boost prices

By Jessica Zhou and Martin Ritchie

 

Copper extended gains, hitting a record high for a second straight session, as tight near-term supplies and expectations the US will tariff imports of refined metal buoyed prices.

 

The industrial metal rose for a fourth day on the London Metal Exchange, touching an all-time peak of $14,617 a ton. Copper has rallied around 17% this year, supported by a long-term mismatch between constrained mine supply and growing demand from data centers, renewable energy equipment and power grids.

 

Shorter-term tightness has been amplified by a massive shift of refined copper toward the US, to capture higher prices due to the prospect of tariffs. The flows have drained stockpiles in LME warehouses. That triggered a severe squeeze last month and kept the futures curve in steep backwardation, a market structure that indicates a dearth of supply. 

 

 

Demand in China, the world’s biggest copper consumer, is also expected to pick up as the market enters a traditional peak season for manufacturing, following a recent lull. Inventories in Shanghai Futures Exchange warehouses fell to the lowest since 2024 last week. 

 

“It should be easy for copper to reach $15,000,” said Jia Zheng, a trading manager at Suzhou Chuangyuan Harmony-Win Capital Management Co. Orders from State Grid Corp. of China are looking good, based on conversation with clients, she said.

 

Operational problems at major copper projects are fueling concerns over supply, with global mined production at risk of posting its first annual decline since 2017 unless output recovers in the second half.

 

Three-month copper futures rose 0.5% to $14,581 a ton on the LME as of 11:08 a.m. in Singapore after being up as much as 0.7% earlier. Zinc jumped 1.1% and aluminum climbed 0.1%. Iron ore futures advanced 0.8% to $101.10 a ton in Singapore.