Copper edges lower as higher oil, AI doubts weigh

Copper prices slipped on Friday as rising oil costs raised concerns about industrial demand and weakness in technology shares reduced appetite for risk, Business Recorder reported. At 0310 GMT, the London Metal Exchange’s three-month copper contract was 0.25% lower at $14,320.50 a metric ton, while Shanghai’s most-active contract declined 0.6% to 109,050 yuan a ton. Brent futures advanced 1.44% amid increased Houthi attacks on Saudi Arabia.

The report said market participants had questioned how much artificial-intelligence infrastructure would add to copper consumption. Reuters-surveyed analysts lifted their 2027 LME cash-price forecasts, but the anticipated average remained nearly 4% below current prices; they also put the projected global surplus at 125,000 tons for 2026 and 92,000 tons for 2027. China provided some support, with lower inventories, while the Yangshan import premium fell 2.44% to $200 a ton on Thursday, still near its highest level in more than a decade.