Copper: rose toward $4.8 per pound, approaching the record $5 level set in early March, boosted by a weaker dollar, and as investors remain cautious over Russia’s invasion of Ukraine.
Still, concerns over demand from the world’s largest consumer China lingered. China’s financial hub of Shanghai launched a planned two-stage lockdown to contain a coronavirus surge and said that all companies and factories will suspend manufacturing.
On the supply side, the world’s largest copper producer Codelco said it would start drilling in the Salar de Maricunga by late March, and that it would last about 10 months. Meanwhile, the rising global production should ease worries about the market deficit.
The ICSG said mine production grew by around 2.3% in 2021, driven by higher output from Peru, the world’s second-largest copper-producing country, and Indonesia.
