Copper Hovers Near $10,000 as US Tariff Concerns Drive Trading

Copper traded near the highest level in more than three months as market players look to take advantage of price gaps between London, New York and Shanghai.

The three-month London Metal Exchange copper contract is trading in a tight range just below $10,000 a ton, after touching that level in Tuesday’s session.

“What could be attributed to easing trade tensions and receding recession risks is, in our view, all about trade tariffs,” Julius Baer’s Carsten Menke said in a note. 

A record amount of copper arrived in US this year due to expectations of an import tariff on the industrial metal. That has fueled a stronger rally in Comex copper prices than its peer exchanges. Front-month copper contracts on Comex have gained around 25% so far this year to continue attracting copper to US from elsewhere. 

“To put the surge in US imports into perspective, they seem big enough to turn a well-balanced market into a tight one – at least on paper,” according to Menke. 

The market is also mulling the fallout from a supply disruption in Peru, where artisanal miners are staging blockades that are impacting the transport of copper from some operations, including those owned by MMG Ltd. and Hudbay Minerals Inc., as they push for a regulatory framework that caters specifically to small-scale mines.

The copper inventory on Comex stood at 212,139 tons, more than double the LME stockpiles. The drawdown of LME stocks laid the groundwork for a major squeeze last week when nearby spread surged to its highest since 2021.

Copper was steady at $9,944 a ton on the LME as of 11:25 a.m. in London, after briefly hitting $10,000 on Tuesday — the highest level since March 26. Aluminum fell 0.2%, while tin was down 0.6%.

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