Copper futures jumped to around $6.1 per pound on Wednesday, setting new record highs as supply side risks continued to dominate market sentiment. Fears of potential new US tariffs on refined copper have spurred aggressive stockpiling in the US, tightening availability elsewhere. At the same time, disruptions at major South American producers due to extreme weather, labor strikes, and political uncertainty have further constrained global supply. Meanwhile, China’s copper output is expected to remain elevated in the near term, leaving prices vulnerable to periodic pullbacks. On the demand side, the global push toward clean energy and the rapid expansion of artificial intelligence are driving structurally higher copper consumption, with electric vehicles using up to four times more copper than conventional cars and data centers relying heavily on copper intensive wiring.
