Copper

JP Morgan expects the global deficit in refined copper to grow to 160,000 metric tons in 2026 and continues to forecast copper prices averaging around $11,000 per metric ton next year, the bank said in a note dated Friday.

“Likely excess inventory builds in the U.S. in the coming months ahead of a tariff on copper sets up the potential to leave the rest of the world shorter of copper … setting the stage for our forecast bullish push higher over 2H25 towards $10,400/mt,” JP Morgan noted.

Source – Reuters

President Donald Trump is taking a step toward granting the U.S. mining industry’s biggest wishes by singling out one metal as a focus of his domestic minerals policy: copper.

From talk of acquiring Greenland and its vast mineral wealth to prodding Ukraine for minerals in exchange for help fending off Russia’s invasion, Trump has made the raw materials of modern life a pillar of his foreign policy.

“Copper is, I think, the metal that is really the most critical because it is the electricity metal,” said Debra Struhsacker, a mining industry policy consultant. “The electricity demand is, I think, going to stay. And copper is indispensable for that.”

“Made in America, America first, starts with American mining and American miners that supported this president across the country,” National Mining Association president and CEO Rich Nolan said.

Source – The Associated Press

China urged the United States on Thursday to halt an investigation into potential new tariffs on copper imports to rebuild U.S. production of the critical metal, vowing to retaliate if Chinese entities got caught up in the levies.

“We urge the U.S. side to withdraw its investigation as soon as possible,” He said.

“If the U.S. insists on imposing tariffs and other restrictive measures, China will resolutely take the required steps to safeguard its legitimate rights and interests,” He said, without giving any further details.

Source – Reuters

“Copper is like the second most important thing the Defense Department uses in order to make its weapons systems. And we’re in a situation now where worldwide there’s a glut of copper,” Navarro told Schmitt. “There’s a dumping of copper into our markets. And we’ve lost our ability to both smelt copper, which is taking the ore and getting the raw copper and refine it into the products we need. And it’s a serious thing.”

Source – Independent Journal Review

“American industries depend on copper, and it should be made in America, no exemptions, no exceptions,” Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick said. “It’s time for copper to come home.”

But while the tariffs could be positive for the domestic metals sector, implemented copper tariffs could amplify costs across several segments of the economy. Copper has a broad range of uses, and its cost is an input in the price of everything from electronics to construction materials.

Trump’s tariff probe sparked a surge in copper futures, which rose 1.76% Wednesday morning.

Source – Markets Insider

O’Shea highlights the potential impact of the Trump administration’s focus on domestic resource independence and the importance of refining capacity in the U.S. Highland Copper aims to reach a construction decision for its Copperwood asset by the end of 2025

Source – KITCO News / Video

The $1.4 billion bid made by the Chinese defence and industrial giant in June stalled after Congo state miner Gecamines submitted its own unsolicited bid for the Chemaf assets, deepening a standoff that has been complicated by U.S. officials lobbying against China’s grip on the mineral-rich central African Copperbelt.

Norinco has now proposed that the Democratic Republic of the Congo increase its interest in Chemaf’s Mutoshi and Etoile mines to as much as 15% from 5% currently – at no additional cost – subject to negotiations, said the sources, who asked to remain anonymous.

Source – Reuters

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Norinco – also known as China North Industries Corporation. Within China it is known as China Ordnance Industries Group Corporation Limited