Copper mining stocks posted strong gains on Thursday as the industrial metal reached an all-time high above $14,000 a metric ton, driven in part by speculative buying and expectations of robust demand.
Among large producers, Freeport-McMoRan (NYSE:FCX) climbed 5% and Southern Copper (NYSE:SCCO) rose 5.5%. ERO Copper (NYSE:ERO) led the group with the biggest advance at 7%. Other miners also saw meaningful moves: Hudbay Minerals (NYSE:HBM) increased 6%, Ivanhoe Electric (NYSE:IE) gained 3% and Taseko Mines (NYSE:TGB) rose 4%.
Price action on major exchanges highlighted the abrupt move higher. Benchmark three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange jumped as much as 7.9% to $14,125 a metric ton during Asian trading before paring gains to $13,935, a rise of 6.5% from the prior level. In China, the Shanghai Futures Exchange's most-active copper contract finished the session 6.7% higher at 109,110 yuan, which equates to $15,708.77.
Market observers attribute the spike to a mix of factors beyond pure supply-and-demand dynamics. Speculative buying and elevated expectations for future consumption are cited alongside spillover interest from other hard assets such as gold and silver, which have themselves reached record highs amid geopolitical tensions. Currency movements also played a role - a softer U.S. dollar, trading near multi-year lows, has made copper less expensive for holders of other currencies, supporting the metal's price in international markets.
The move sent clear signals across both commodity and equity markets. Mining equities rallied in tandem with the metal, reflecting investor appetite for exposure to copper's advancing price. At the same time, activity in other hard assets, and developments in foreign exchange conditions, appear to be interacting with metals markets to amplify price momentum.
While the price surge gathered momentum during Asian hours, the LME contract trimmed some of its intraday gains before settlement. The Shanghai contract, measured in yuan, closed higher and shows how local-currency moves can paint a different picture of the same underlying commodity when converted into dollars.
These cross-market dynamics are central to how traders and investors are interpreting recent moves in copper and related equities. The combination of speculative flows, demand expectations and external support from other commodity rallies - set against a weaker dollar - underpinned Thursday's sharp uptick in both the metal and the stock prices of producers.