LME Aluminum 3M Select trades $-53.75 lower to $3041 at 9:05:23 AM
LME Copper 3M Select trades $-234.25 lower to $14113 at 9:05:24 AM
(Bloomberg) – Copper slumped to an 11-week low — dropping below $14,000 a ton — as a fresh selloff in technology stocks hurt risk appetite and clouded the demand outlook. The metal used in cables and wiring for power grids and data centers sank as much as 3.2% to $13,883 a ton on the London Metal Exchange — the lowest since Aug. 19. The slump came as South Korea’s tech-heavy stock market came under pressure and US equity futures struggled for direction as voting got underway in the midterm elections.
Jitters about the rollout of artificial-intelligence spending have pummeled equities over recent weeks, fueling fears about global growth and demand for metals. The selloff has “put the AI demand narrative behind copper’s rally under renewed scrutiny,” RBC Capital Markets LLC analysts wrote in a note.
Copper is still up about 12% this year, but the decline on Tuesday threatens to take it out of a range that’s broadly held over the past two months. This year’s rally was largely driven by expectations the US would impose import tariffs on refined metal, with uncertainty over Washington’s plans now weighing on prices. Investors have also been more cautious as they monitor the risks of renewed conflict between the US and Iran.
Metals broadly can benefit from the demand related to spending on AI-linked infrastructure, but copper has stood out as a potential major winner. Tin, used in soldering electric circuitry, also fell more than 4.5% at one point on Tuesday to $47,385 a ton, the lowest since April.
Copper had risen on Monday, helped in part by a pullback in oil prices that could mitigate inflation pressures. Crude rebounded in Tuesday’s session on concern Washington and Tehran have far to go before reaching a deal to end their war.
Copper was down 2.7% at $13,959 a ton on the LME at 11:45 a.m. in London, while tin was 3.9% lower and aluminum fell 1.7%.
CME HRC Steel last traded at $1360 and $8 higher at 5:55:34 AM
