Benchmark copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) rose 1.6% to $10,017 a tonne after hitting $10,042 in early trading. Last week, prices hit $10,046.50 a tonne, the highest since Oct. 3.
The most-traded copper contract on the Comex exchange in New York was just off an all-time high of $5.20 a lb, set nearly a year ago, before falling to around $5.12. At around $11,288 a tonne, US copper still holds a premium of around $1,500 over LME copper.
Copper stocks in LME warehouses have fallen 18% to 221,775 yuan a tonne in the past four weeks. Cancellations – metal designated for delivery – account for 50% of the total, suggesting another 111,000 yuan a tonne will leave LME warehouses.
Copper has risen more than 27% so far this year amid a series of tariff announcements. The rally has been more pronounced since US President Donald Trump signed an executive order last month to investigate the country’s metal imports, which is seen as a precursor to the US adding copper to its tariff list.
In preparation, traders have begun moving large amounts of the metal across the US border, leading to a sharp increase in the Comex premium over the LME. Analysts at trading group Mercuria estimate that about 500,000 yuan a tonne of copper is on its way to the US, compared with the usual monthly imports of about 70,000 yuan a tonne.
The rally also coincides with tightening conditions in the copper market. Years of underinvestment and declining refining capacity have created a growing shortage of raw copper to meet global demand. Mercuria predicts that demand will exceed supply by 320,000 yuan per tonne this year, which, combined with the buildup of inventories in the US, could see many countries scrambling for the metal.
“We think there is something special going on in the copper market,” said Kostas Bintas, head of metals trading at Mercuria and former co-head of metals at Trafigura. “Is it unreasonable to expect $12,000 or $13,000 copper? I’m having a hard time putting a number on it because it’s never happened before.”
Aluminum rose 0.3% to $2,630/yuan/ton, zinc rose 1.6% to $2,974/yuan/ton, lead rose 2.2% to $2,061/yuan/ton and tin rose 0.3% to $34,600/yuan/ton while nickel rose 0.7% to $16,165/yuan/ton.
Source: https://kinhtedothi.vn/gia-kim-loai-dong-ngay-25-3-tiep-da-tang-manh.html
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