Copper price today witnessed a relief rally after sharp declines over the previous two sessions, with worries over supply and improving demand outlook helping stabilise the red metal.
Copper prices on Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) rose as much as 5.91% to ₹1,291 per kg on Tuesday, as of 2:10 pm IST.
Meanwhile, on the London Metal Exchange(LME), the benchmark three-month copper contract jumped 4.08% to $13,417 a tonne. This rebound followed steep corrections since Friday, after an earlier blistering rally across both exchanges.
Meanwhile, the most-traded copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose 2.60%, ending the daytime session at $15,066.54 per metric tonne.
According to analysts, as quoted by Reuters, the rebound in copper prices came following a recovery in gold and silver prices in the metal markets.
What’s driving the copper prices today?
The rally in the copper prices was driven by signs of bargain hunting from investors in China, the world’s largest consumer of the metal. Fabricators and manufacturers also re-entered the market after staying on the sidelines for weeks, rebuilding inventories ahead of the Lunar New Year later this month.
As per a Bloomberg report, investors have been flocking to metals amid uncertainty around the US dollar and a move away from currencies and sovereign bonds, triggering sharp rallies across commodities in January. Copper’s latest gains follow a surge of over 40% in 2025.
According to a Bloomberg report, spot copper traded at a discount to the three-month LME contract, reflecting a contango structure that points to sufficient near-term supply. At the same time, the previously wide premium of Comex prices over LME contracts has faded, reducing incentives to ship metal to the US ahead of possible import tariffs that had earlier tightened supplies elsewhere.
“From a fundamental standpoint, the rejection aligns with a shift in macro and positioning dynamics. Strength in the US Dollar and a reassessment of global growth and interest-rate expectations triggered profit booking in base metals after an extended rally. At the same time, earlier concerns around soft Chinese industrial demand weighed on sentiment at higher prices. However, recent developments show that Chinese copper plants and fabricators have returned to the market to buy on dips after staying sidelined during the rally, highlighting that physical demand remains intact but is highly price-sensitive. This has helped stabilize prices near lower demand zones but has not been strong enough to offset speculative selling pressure,” said Ponmudi R, CEO, Enrich Money.
Where’s copper prices headed?
Looking ahead, copper’s direction will depend on whether price can reclaim and sustain above the 1,330–1,350 resistance band with supportive macro cues, according to Ponmudi.
“Until that happens, the market structure favors a sell-on-rise bias, with downside risks extending toward 1,240, followed by 1,200 and the 1,180–1,170 demand zone. While underlying physical demand provides a cushion on deeper declines, the combination of technical exhaustion and macro headwinds suggests that upside attempts may continue to face resistance, keeping Copper in a consolidation-to-correction phase rather than a renewed trending move,” he added.
Meanwhile, Anindya Banerjee, Head of Commodity and Currency Research, Kotak Securities, said that copper prices recovered sharply from an intraday low of 1156 yesterday to around 1297 at the time of writing. This move reflects a positional-sizing rebound after a steep crash from 1480 to 1156 over just a few sessions, driven by aggressive deleveraging and margin-call–led liquidation, Banerjee said.
“Looking ahead, February typically sees reduced participation as China enters its holiday period, which could push metals markets into a consolidation phase. Hence, we expect copper to trade in a broad range of 1150–1350 over the next few weeks,” Banerjee added.
Disclaimer: This story is for educational purposes only. The views and recommendations above are those of individual analysts or broking companies, not Mint. We advise investors to check with certified experts before making any investment decisions.
