Copper futures slipped to around $6.60 per pound on Thursday, breaking a four-session winning streak as traders locked in profits after the recent rally. Risk sentiment was further pressured by weaker-than-expected earnings from Alphabet and Samsung, which rekindled doubts about the durability of artificial intelligence–driven investment and tempered investors’ appetite for risk assets.
Even so, prices remained close to a two-week high, supported by tightening physical supplies in China, the world’s largest copper consumer, as evidenced by rising import premiums. The Yangshan copper premium, a key gauge of Chinese demand for imported copper, jumped to $205 per ton on Wednesday, its highest level in more than a decade. The surge underscores intensifying competition for material both within China and globally, after earlier worries over possible US import tariffs prompted traders to redirect shipments to American warehouses, reducing availability in other markets.
