Active demand in China sets copper on track for weekly gain

Copper extended gains to a fourth consecutive session on Friday, edging back towards record levels on strong Chinese demand, according to Business Recorder. Three-month LME copper rose 0.2% to $14,521 per ton by 1009 GMT, having reached $14,572.5 earlier, the highest since September 10, when a record $14,875 was set. Across the week, the metal has gained 2%.

High-frequency readings show Chinese use of copper and aluminium, along with flat steel, up 1-2% year on year during the first half of this month. Goldman Sachs noted that downstream buyers have reacted less strongly to the higher price, while tight scrap supply in China is delaying the return of smelting capacity from maintenance. The Yangshan premium, a measure of Chinese appetite for imported metal, has risen 72% in September to $124 per ton, its highest in nearly four years. The yuan ended Friday at its firmest level against the dollar since mid-2022, making dollar-priced metals more appealing to Chinese buyers ahead of next week's Trump-Xi meeting.

LME-registered copper stocks shrank to 139,650 tons, after 4,500 tons were cancelled across Asia, mainly Taiwan and Hong Kong. Inventories held in Shanghai Futures Exchange warehouses climbed 2.4% through the week to 56,073 tons, snapping a three-week decline. COMEX stocks held roughly flat at 696,631 tons as the US premium over LME is too narrow to draw shipments, while the White House weighs refined copper tariffs.