(Bloomberg) — Copper and other industrial metals rose as investors awaited the US Federal Reserve’s final policy meeting of the year for clues on the central bank’s thinking about the US economy in 2026.
Prices on the London Metal Exchange rose as much as 1.3% to $11,641.50 a ton, recovering most of a decline from the previous session. Investors are expecting the Fed to deliver a quarter-point rate reduction later on Wednesday, and a key focus will be on how Chair Jerome Powell describes the bank’s views on growth, inflation and rates for next year.
Kevin Hassett, the frontrunner in US President Donald Trump’s search to replace Powell as Fed chair, said Tuesday that he sees plenty of room to substantially lower rates.
Copper — a metal critical for electrification and the energy transition — has gained more than 30% on the LME this year. It hit a record $11,771 a ton earlier this week, fueled by concerns that a rush of metal to the US to front-run possible import tariffs will fuel shortages elsewhere.
The copper market is in for a “very, very volatile” year in 2026 given uncertainties around US tariffs, Guy Wolf, head of market analytics at Marex Group Plc. said in an online briefing.
Copper rose 0.7% to $11,565 a ton on the LME as of 3:53 p.m. in Shanghai. Aluminum and zinc also gained, while tin extended a period of volatility with a gain of more than 2%.
(An earlier version of this story corrected a price in the fourth paragraph.)
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