Copper futures eased to around $6.45 per pound on Wednesday, extending the previous session’s decline, as increased deliveries to London Metal Exchange (LME) warehouses helped alleviate a historic supply squeeze. LME copper inventories rose by 20,000 tons on Tuesday—the largest single-day gain since April—with Trafigura Group reportedly accounting for a significant share of the inflows.
Prices had surged to record highs earlier this month as tightening global supply drove gains, largely on the back of arbitrage trades ahead of potential US import tariffs. At the same time, top producer Chile expects copper output to fall this year, as persistent disruptions continue to weigh on mines and development projects.
The broader metals complex also came under pressure from elevated global bond yields and higher oil prices, which kept inflation concerns and interest rate risks firmly in focus for investors.
