Copper drifts lower on profit taking, economic uncertainty
XLB•Other base metals mostly weaker
LME aluminium CMAL3 fell 0.5% to $3,242 a ton and was set to end the week down 1.2%.
Supply recovery prospects from the Middle East have relieved some expected tightness, while alumina production at Norsk Hydro's NHY.OL Alunorte refinery in Brazil started scaling back up on Thursday.
LME zinc CMZN3 gained 0.6% to $3,774 a ton and lead CMPB3 added 0.2% to $1,890.50 while nickel CMNI3 lost 0.6% to $16,670 and tin CMSN3 dipped 0.2% to $55,735.
Analysts say the uptrend remains intact
"We're seeing some profit taking after a strong run up, but that uptrend looks fairly solid. The long-term drivers are not going to go away anytime soon and will continue to underpin prices," said Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank in Copenhagen.
Copper prices would have to break below $13,700 to damage the uptrend, he added.
"The market wants to trade from the assumption that a solution will be found in the Middle East, but it could flare up at any time."
Oil prices rose on Friday after the United States threatened an indefinite naval blockade of Iran. O/R
Inventories keep falling as Shanghai copper slips
LME copper inventories extended their decline on Friday to 204,975 tons, down 48% since late May, while the cash contract's premium over three-month futures CMCU0-3 surged to $256.50 a ton, its strongest since June 2025.
The most-traded copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange SCFcv1 edged 0.1% lower to 107,690 yuan ($15,970.64) a ton.
"Demand for base metals may appear resilient, but we still think it is questionable if it can sustain the same strong momentum given how quickly asset prices have accelerated while wage growth is somewhat subdued," Fastmarkets analyst Andy Farida said.
