Copper Prices Trade Near All-Time Highs Amid Russia-Ukraine War

The three-month copper price in the London Metal Exchange (LME) traded almost stable at US$10,285 a tonne on Tuesday, very close to all-time highs, amid the war between Russia and Ukraine.

In an attempt to maintain control over the day, the LME activated its “backwardation” alert, a mechanism that postpones the physical deliveries of already settled metals operations, arguing that the conflict Ukraine for the invasion of Russia is overly agitating the market.

Nickel prices, meanwhile, more than doubled, forcing the London Metal Exchange to halt listings of the metal, due to an unprecedented stock supply shortage caused by low inventories and supply concerns. from Russia.

Nickel at three months in the London Metal Exchange It was up 66% at $80,000 a tonne when trading on the market halted, having previously climbed almost 111% to a record $101,365.

Russia supplies the world with around 10% of its nickel needs, mainly for use in making stainless steel and batteries for electric vehicles. It also produces about 6% of the world’s aluminum.

Concerns about supply delays and logistical headaches have fueled metal prices. Additionally, some market participants were forced to cover short positions as prices rose.

“This is nothing more than a reflection of the immediate low supply in the market, which has led to unprecedented price swings. Apparently there are short positions that could not find the necessary physical backing to counter their trade.”, said Al Munro, an analyst at brokerage Marex.

The metal buying frenzy pushed prices higher in early trading on Tuesday. Zinc jumped 18.4% to a record $4,896 a tonne, while lead rose as much as 9.4% and tin hit a record $51,000 a tonne.

With information from Reuters