SINGAPORE: Copper prices on the London Metal Exchange and the Shanghai Futures Exchange were rangebound on Friday, easing from an initial shock of the US announcement of a 50% import tariff effective August 1, as the market awaited further details.
Three-month copper on the LME was down 0.18% at $9,683.5 per metric ton, as of 0101 GMT.
The contract has lost 1.73% so far this week, and was poised for a second weekly decline.
The most-traded copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange edged 0.18% higher to 78,530 yuan ($10,943.12), but was on track to end the week down 1.97%.
US President Donald Trump announced on Wednesday a 50% copper tariff to start on August 1 to boost domestic development of a key industry for defense, electronics, and automobiles.
“Uncertainties and unknown have remained, such as what copper products to be included, whether the 50% will be final or it could be adjusted, or whether there will be an extension of the implementation date,” a Beijing-based metals analyst from a futures company said, requesting anonymity.
In the previous session, the COMEX premium over the LME was at $2,615 a ton, or 27%, down from a peak touched on Tuesday, as traders shipped roughly about a year’s worth of copper imports to the United States so far this year.
With so much copper already shipped to the US, a full 50% increase in the COMEX-LME premium may not be realistic, but a 40% rise is likely if the tariff is implemented as announced, the analyst said.
LME lead fell 0.54% to $2,033 a ton on Friday and nickel dipped 0.2% to $15,260.
SHFE nickel gained 1.03% to 121,140 yuan a ton, zinc was up 0.58% at 22,415 yuan, aluminium rose 0.27% at 20,725 yuan, tin adavnced 0.16% to 265,430 yuan, while lead eased 0.73% to 17,090 yuan.
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