Copper Plunges from Record

2026-09-10 16:14 By Andre Joaquim 1 min. read

Copper futures in the US plummeted to $6.45 on Thursday from the record high of $6.5 earlier in the session on reports that the US will backtrack on copper tariffs.

The White House is reconsidering its earlier signal to place levies on refined copper products due to high inflation for manufacturers ahead of the midterms.

Expectations that the US would add refined copper to tariffs on semi-finished products triggered a surge in global prices and large inflows of metal into North America.

This coincided with the ongoing shortages of sulfuric acid for major copper refiners worldwide as supply pressures from GCC countries drove China to halt their exports.

Consequently, backwardation curves steepened both in major Western copper exchanges.

Mined supply has also faltered with reports from Codelco and Freeport-McMoRan posting double digit declines in production, shortly after the International Copper Study Group pointed to a 1.1% decline in global production in the first half of the year.



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Copper Plunges from Record
Copper futures in the US plummeted to $6.45 on Thursday from the record high of $6.5 earlier in the session on reports that the US will backtrack on copper tariffs. The White House is reconsidering its earlier signal to place levies on refined copper products due to high inflation for manufacturers ahead of the midterms. Expectations that the US would add refined copper to tariffs on semi-finished products triggered a surge in global prices and large inflows of metal into North America. This coincided with the ongoing shortages of sulfuric acid for major copper refiners worldwide as supply pressures from GCC countries drove China to halt their exports. Consequently, backwardation curves steepened both in major Western copper exchanges. Mined supply has also faltered with reports from Codelco and Freeport-McMoRan posting double digit declines in production, shortly after the International Copper Study Group pointed to a 1.1% decline in global production in the first half of the year.
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Copper futures traded around $6.76 per pound on Thursday, staying close to record highs as ongoing supply concerns and tariff uncertainty continued to support prices. Markets were awaiting the Trump administration’s decision on imposing new tariffs on refined metal imports, while the persistent premium for copper futures on New York’s Comex continued to create arbitrage opportunities. Traders have continued redirecting shipments toward US warehouses, contributing to sharply declining inventories at warehouses tracked by the London Metal Exchange and the Shanghai Futures Exchange. Major copper-producing countries in South America have also faced operational disruptions this year, weighing on production and exports. Meanwhile, supply has struggled to keep pace with rising demand from data centers, renewable energy projects and electricity grids.
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