Benchmark copper prices fell more than 3 percent on Wednesday, on track to register the biggest monthly decline since June 2022 against a backdrop of weak data from top metals consumer China and lingering trade uncertainty.
Benchmark copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) slid 3.4 percent to $9,123 a metric ton. Prices were on course for a 6 percent decline in April.
The US Comex copper contract slumped 5.5 percent to $4.61 per lb. The sharper decline in Comex was due to investors liquidating arbitrage positions that had been placed in expectation of US tariffs on copper, a trader said.
Data on Wednesday showed that Chinese factory activity contracted at the fastest pace in 16 months in April, keeping alive calls for further stimulus.
“Copper is currently being held back by macroeconomic uncertainty,” said SP Angel analyst John Meyer.
“While Trump tariffs threaten to create a mini-recession in the West, we feel that new stimulus in China and much of Asia will continue to keep manufacturers going and drive growth.”
Weighing on financial markets was a lack of progress in de-escalating the US-China trade conflict.
Despite claims from US officials that talks are ongoing, China has denied any active discussions. US Treasury Secretary Scott Bessent said on Tuesday that it will become evident to Beijing that Chinese tariffs are not sustainable for the world’s second-largest economy.
Adding to the disquiet was data showing that the US economy contracted in the first quarter.
