Copper prices continue to make gains, driven by supply and demand fundamentals and further boosted by tariff fears.
The price reached a record high on January 29, and while it has since moderated somewhat, several factors have injected fresh concerns and volatility into the market.
Among them has been a traditional slow period for base metals trading, as Chinese manufacturing and construction take an extended pause for Lunar New Year celebrations, essentially flatlining commodity demand during that period.
As China is the world’s largest consumer of copper, the slowdown in key sectors there has injected significant downward pressure on the price of the red metal over the last few weeks.
However, the end of the holiday has coincided with a decision by the Supreme Court of the United States (SCOTUS) that has struck down global tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump in 2025.
While the decision doesn’t affect the 50 percent tariffs on raw copper entering the United States, it does affect tariffs on other goods originating elsewhere, including China and India, which faced high tariffs.
For China, this means that tariffs are likely to fall from 32 percent to 24 percent, and should increase overall demand from manufacturers. However, uncertainty still looms over global markets.
Following the SCOTUS decision on Friday (February 20) Trump responded by reinstating tariffs of 10 percent using different mechanisms, then on Saturday (February 21), he increased the levies to 15 percent.
The new fees can only be imposed for 150 days before they must be submitted to Congress for extension. Although the Republican-led House of Representatives has strongly backed the president in the past, it may face pushback on extending the unpopular tariffs ahead of the mid-term elections in November.
The decision created greater uncertainty in the copper market, as speculation began that the US could seek to extend copper tariffs, which would accelerate the imposition of levies on refined products.
When tariffs were initially applied to copper in August 2025, the White House said fees wouldn’t be applied to refined products until 2027 and 2028.
The combination of restocking in China, tariff fears and a weakening US dollar caused prices to jump in recent days, climbing 2.8 percent on Tuesday (February 24) to US$13,228 per metric ton on the London Metal Exchange and back over the US$6 per pound mark in the United States during afternoon trading on Wednesday (February 25).
Likewise, the price on the Shanghai Metals Market was up, with SMM 1 copper cathode rising by US$119.77 on Wednesday (February 25) to US$13,104.73 per metric ton.
Securities Disclosure: I, Dean Belder, hold no direct investment interest in any company mentioned in this article.