LONDON: Copper prices fell on Friday as physical buyers paused ahead of a week that could prove pivotal if it brings more clarity about the US copper import tariff and the US trade agreements with other countries.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange fell 0.4% to $9,839 a ton in official open-outcry trading. On the technical front, the metal is supported by the 21-day moving average at $9,804.
The most active COMEX copper futures, which hit a record high of $5.959 a lb on Thursday, were last down 0.2% at $5.792, trading at a 30% premium over the LME benchmark.
The premium remained below the 50% import tariff planned by President Donald Trump as the market is waiting for confirmation of the August 1 deadline and a list of the copper products to which the levy would apply.
“So much uncertainty remains around the tariff - will the announcement be delayed? Will there be exemptions?” said Marex senior base metals strategist Alastair Munro. Chile, Canada and Mexico are the main copper suppliers to the United States.
Physical buying, which had been very active when the copper price was around $9,600 in mid-July, got muted by current price levels, although the relatively light available stock in LME-registered warehouses was providing support ahead of September, a period of seasonal demand growth, Munro added.
Copper inventories in warehouses monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange fell 13% this week, the exchange said, to 73,423 metric tons, the lowest since December. The US has already reached trade agreements with Japan, Indonesia and the Philippines.
Trump is heading to Scotland on Friday for golf and a meeting with British Prime Minister Keir Starmer, while China-US trade talks are due in Sweden next week.
LME aluminium edged up 0.3% to $2,655.5 a ton in official activity, zinc gained 0.1% to $2,845, lead climbed 0.4% to $2,030, tin added 0.6% to $34,825 and nickel lost 0.2% to $15.440.
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