Copper rallies on easing oil, Middle East peace deal hopes
- The benchmark three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was up 1.64% at $13,704 a metric ton
SINGAPORE: Copper firmed on Friday amid easing oil prices and a wave of optimism that a peace deal between the US and Iran to end the war may be within reach.
The benchmark three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was up 1.64% at $13,704 a metric ton by 0300 GMT.
The most-traded copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose 1.5% to 104,960 yuan ($15,516.30) a ton.
US President Donald Trump said on Thursday that a peace deal could be signed as soon as this weekend, which may reopen the Strait of Hormuz.
Iran, however, said no final decision had been made on a possible agreement.
Copper is widely considered a bellwether for the health of the global economy, and the war has weighed on prices.
Copper prices on both the LME and the SHFE fell to multi-week lows on Thursday amid one of the worse outbreaks of violence between the US and Iran since the sides agreed on a ceasefire in April.
On Thursday, the World Bank cut its global growth outlook for 2026 due to the war and warned of a further decline if energy supply disruptions worsen and accompany financial market stress.
Persistently high inflation has also triggered concern about potential higher-for-longer interest rates.
On Thursday, the European Central Bank became the first of the major global central banks to raise borrowing costs.
High interest rates dampen demand prospects for growth-dependent industrial metals.
Other base metal also mostly turned positive on Middle East peace hopes.
On the LME, aluminium gained 1.09%, zinc gained 1.03%, lead gained 0.62%, nickel gained 1.11% and tin gained 0.76%.
Elsewhere on the SHFE, aluminium gained 1.06%, zinc added 0.43%, lead lost 0.46%, nickel gained 0.9% and tin rose 2.72%.
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