- Production halt in Indonesia fuels nickel price surge
- Antofagasta invests $200M in Chilean copper project
Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange (LME) showed mixed trends d-o-d, with copper experiencing the highest gain of 2.21%. Meanwhile, inventories at LME-registered warehouses saw negative trends, except for lead, which increased by 4% d-o-d.
COMEX market
Copper prices on the COMEX stood at $10,190/tonne (t), increasing by 2.1% compared to the previous close.
Indian market overview
In India’s non-ferrous metals markets, BigMint assessed domestic copper armature scrap at INR 800,000/t ex-Delhi, up by INR 5,000/t d-o-d. Aluminium Tense scrap prices remained stable d-o-d, with ex-Delhi at INR 183,000/t and ex-Chennai at INR 185,000/t.
Key updates
Antofagasta commits $200 mn to Chilean copper project
Antofagasta plans to invest $200 million over seven years in exploring its Cachorro copper project in northern Chile. Pending regulatory approval, the company will conduct extensive drilling and environmental studies. Located near existing operations, Cachorro holds 255 million tonnes (mnt) of copper-rich resources and is one of the decade’s largest greenfield discoveries, promising strong future potential.
Nickel prices surge amid supply concerns
Nickel prices climbed up d-o-d on Tuesday, with SHFE up 1.8% and LME soaring 2.4%, crossing $15,400/t. LME prices have jumped over 9.7% since 9 April, fuelled by supply risks from Indonesia’s production halt. This price rally undermines recent claims of stainless steel price cuts, signalling a strong market reaction to potential production disruptions.
Oil prices rise d-o-d
On Tuesday, oil prices inched up d-o-d, supported by potential US tariff relief on autos and a rebound in Chinese crude imports. Gains were fuelled by exemptions on electronics tariffs and expectations of tighter sanctions on Iranian exports, though uncertainty lingered due to volatile US trade policies and nuclear tensions with Iran.
Brent crude futures were recorded at $65.16/barrel today. Meanwhile, WTI crude oil futures increased by 0.50% d-o-d to $61.84/barrel.
Natural gas prices up
Natural gas stood at $3.36/metric million British thermal unit (MMBtu), up by 1.20% d-o-d.
Dollar index inches up
The dollar index, which measures the value of the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, hovered at 99.41, up by 0.02% d-o-d at the time of reporting. The Indian rupee was recorded at INR 85.68 d-o-d against the dollar.
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