Copper dips as traders eye US-Iran talks, Fed Chair nominee’s Senate hearing

Copper dipped on Tuesday as investors weighed prospects for renewed peace talks between the United States and Iran, and awaited Federal Reserve Chair nominee Kevin Warsh’s Senate confirmation hearing for cues on interest rates.

Benchmark three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange eased 0.17% to $13,252.50 a metric ton by 0711 GMT.

The most-active copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange closed daytime trading down 0.54% at 102,140 yuan ($14,988.63) a ton.

Copper hovered below the highs hit last week on both bourses, when prices drew support from prospects for a second round of US-Iran talks that could help end the war.

Hopes for renewed talks faded after Iran said it would not attend following the US seizure of an Iranian cargo ship, though a senior Iranian official later told Reuters that Tehran was considering sending delegates to Islamabad.

But no decision had been made, the official said, while Foreign Minister Abbas Araqchi said continued US ceasefire violations were a major obstacle.

US Vice President JD Vance, expected to lead the US delegation, remained in the United States on Monday, a separate source said.

Brent crude futures fell about 0.5% after a more than 5% jump on Monday, while the dollar was steady.

Investors were also focused on Warsh’s Senate hearing on Tuesday, which will test his independence from Donald Trump’s White House that had criticised a Fed led by Jerome Powell multiple times for failing to cut rates sooner.

The hearing is also key as it comes at a time when inflation fears and growth worries have grown amid elevated energy prices due to the Middle East war.

Meanwhile, China’s refined copper output surged to a monthly record in March, signalling no production cut despite last year’s vow by top smelters to trim output by 10% to counter falling processing fees of copper concentrates.

Elsewhere on the LME, aluminium tumbled 0.84%, zinc dipped 0.12%, lead added 0.20%, nickel lost 0.63% and tin dropped 0.56%.

Among other SHFE metals, aluminium lost 1.23%, zinc dropped 0.66%, lead rose 0.48%, nickel lost 0.67, and tin shed 0.20%.