President Donald Trump said he will put a 50% tariff on copper imports effective Aug. 1.
“I am announcing a 50% tariff on copper, effective Aug. 1, 2025, after receiving a robust national security assessment,” Trump posted to his Truth Social account Wednesday evening.
Copper prices rose 2.62% after Trump’s comments, then extended its gains before leaping 13.12% upwards and hitting its best one-day gain since 1989.
Source – UPI News
Miner Freeport-McMoRan (FCX.N), beat Wall Street estimates for second-quarter profit on Wednesday, as higher copper and gold prices helped offset lower production.
The company’s shares rose 1.6% to $40.54 in pre-market trade.
Freeport could be a big beneficiary, seeing as much as $1.6-billion boost to annual profit, given its position as the largest U.S. producer with more expansion options than rivals.
Freeport, which supplies about 70% of U.S. refined copper, said it expects to sell 1.3 billion pounds from its domestic mines in 2025.
Source – Reuters
A surge in rates to borrow the precious metal has become the latest sign of alarm, with anxiety building over the impact of further tariffs from US President Donald Trump. That’s sparked a dash to ship silver into the US in a bid to capture premium prices in New York, possibly causing a squeeze in London.
“Should the long-fabled ‘silver squeeze’ materialize, this slower tradeflow will be a key contributor to prolonging” any potential disruption BMO Capital Markets analyst George Heppel said in a note. That’s because it would take time for silver stockpiles to flow from the US back to London, he said.
Source – Mining Weekly
Spot gold jumped over 1% to $3,214.92 an ounce, as of 0801 GMT, after hitting a record high of $3,219.84 earlier in the session. Bullion is up over 5% so far this week.
“Recession risks are mounting, bond yields are soaring, and the U.S. dollar continues to weaken – all factors reinforcing gold’s role as a crisis hedge and inflation shield,” said Alexander Zumpfe, a precious metals trader at Heraeus Metals Germany.
“We believe gold has further to run—in the upside case, we target USD 3,400-3,500/oz over the months ahead,” said UBS analyst Giovanni Staunovo.
Spot silver gained 0.4% to $31.31 an ounce, while platinum added 0.7% to $944.35. Palladium gained 1.9% to $925.43.
Source – Reuters
Markets initially dropped after Fed Chair Jerome Powell hinted at fewer rate cuts next year, but quickly recovered as investors recognized this aligned with recent expectations, said StoneX analyst Rhona O’Connell.
“Gold sold off, showcasing once more that it is not an inflation hedge per se, but regained some lost ground on a threatened U.S. government shutdown,” said Carsten Menke, analyst at Julius Baer.
Source – Reuters https://www.reuters.com/markets/commodities/gold-recovers-one-month-low-short-covering-2024-12-19/
“Gold is reacting to a sharp rise in the U.S. dollar after a hawkish Fed cut,” said Michael Armbruster, co-founder and managing partner at Altavest. Source – Market Watch https://www.marketwatch.com/livecoverage/stock-market-today-dow-futures-rise-ahead-of-final-rate-decision-and-economic-forecast-of-the-year/card/gold-futures-decline-after-fed-announcement-WFThfHDv2mQxezfnO3an
“Despite the pullback we’ve seen in gold prices following yesterday’s Fed statement, we believe gold’s positive momentum will continue in the short to medium term,” Manthey said by email. Source – CNBC https://www.msn.com/en-us/money/other/the-fed-s-hawkish-signal-sparked-gold-jitters-but-analysts-see-support-for-the-precious-metal-in-2025/ar-AA1wajju?ocid=socialshare
Gold fell to a near three-week low on Monday as a U.S.-European Union trade accord lifted the dollar and risk sentiment, while investors awaited fresh cues on rate policy from this week’s Federal Reserve meeting.
Spot gold fell 0.6% to $3,316.03 per ounce as of 11:36 a.m. ET (1536 GMT), after touching its lowest level since July 9, earlier in the session. U.S. gold futures were down 0.7% at $3,313.2 per ounce.
“I think the more trade announcements we get, the more the dollar increases. These tariff deals are dollar friendly, lowering the allure of gold and driving the sell-off amid a risk-on sentiment,” said Marex analyst Edward Meir.
Spot silver was down 0.1% at $38.12 per ounce and platinum fell 0.6% to $1,393.25, while palladium gained 2.1% to $1,245.52.
Source – Reuters
The U.S. will soon be flooded with massive amounts of copper shipments in a global rush to front-run President Trump’s probable tariffs, with 100K-150K metric tons of refined copper expected to arrive in U.S. ports in the coming weeks, which potentially would surpass the all-time record of 136,951 tons set in January 2022, Bloomberg reported Wednesday.
Goldman Sachs analysts said they expect all forms of copper shipped to the U.S. to be hit with tariffs by year-end, keeping Comex prices at a hefty premium over other benchmarks, and noted that tariffs could cause China to refine 10K-20K tons/month less copper within the first three months – in a global market that Goldman already expected to face a 180K-ton deficit this year.
Source – Seeking Alpha
