Copper: Humanity’s first and most important future metal
Millions of feet of copper wiring will be required for strengthening the world’s power grids, and hundreds of thousands of tonnes more are needed to build wind and solar farms.
The copper price rose on Tuesday after Russia returned some troops to base after exercises near Ukraine, easing fears about a potential invasion and boosting financial markets.
Earlier this week, President Vladimir Putin countered US warnings that Russia may invade Ukraine within days by emphasizing a de-escalation of tensions and continued efforts to find a diplomatic resolution. Moscow has repeatedly denied it plans to invade.
Copper for delivery in March retreated on the Comex market in New York, touching $4.5520 per pound ($10,014 per tonne), up 1% compared to Monday’s closing.
[Click here for an interactive chart of copper prices]
“The metals markets in the short-term remain at the mercy of the Ukraine situation, moving back and forth between risk-off and risk-on dynamic,” said Gianclaudio Torlizzi, partner at consultancy T-Commodity in Milan.
“But if we exclude the geopolitical pressures, the general trend remains on the upside for most of the metals.”
Any downside moves, including knee-jerk reactions to faster than expected U.S. monetary tightening, would be a buying opportunity, Torlizzi added.
With physical buying in China expected to start picking up in the next few weeks as the economy returns to normal after the Lunar New Year holidays, visible copper stocks are likely to remain at multi-year lows in the near term, said CRU analyst Craig Lang.
(With files from Reuters and Bloomberg)
