Copper rises with bets on future demand growth

Copper prices rose on Friday, heading for their fourth week of growth on renewed bets on a future demand boost, while aluminium hit its highest since April 2022.

Benchmark three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange gained 2.1% to $12,990 a metric ton in official open-outcry trading.

The metal, used in power and construction, hit a record high of $13,387.50 on Tuesday after rising 42% in 2025 - its biggest annual gain since 2009 - due to concerns about tightened supply and bets on future surging demand from the AI boom and energy transition.

Highlighting these bets among global miners, Rio Tinto is in early talks to buy Glencore, the companies said, in what could create the world's largest mining company with a combined market value of nearly $207 billion.

This follows Anglo American and Teck Resources' pending merger to create a copper-focused industry heavyweight.

Copper's sharp rally has pushed prices into new territory, making it harder for traders to identify resistance and support levels. From a technical perspective, this momentum makes it easier for prices to continue climbing, said Dan Smith, managing director at Commodity Market Analytics.

Signalling some stress across the curve, the premium of LME cash against the three-month copper contract widened to $55, its five-week high.

Two stimulus packages introduced by top metals consumer China at the end of 2025 are also supporting wider sentiment and giving copper and other base metals a strong start to the year, Smith added.

These measures include an initial allocation of $8.9 billion for a consumer goods trade-in scheme in 2026 and investment plans, involving two major construction projects and $42 billion in central budget funding.

Among other LME metals, aluminium was up 2.3% at $3,161 in official activity after hitting $3,162 for its highest since April 2022.

Zinc added 0.2% to $3,142, lead gained 0.6% to $2,039, tin climbed 1.3% to $44,300 and nickel rose 3.6% to $17,775.