Copper Hits Record Levels as Indonesian Smelter Halt Bites

Copper prices have returned to record levels, reaching $6.7005 per pound ($14,772 a tonne) on Tuesday, just four-tenths of a cent shy of its all-time high of $6.7045 set in August. The London Metal Exchange (LME) benchmark price has held above $14,000 a tonne for an unprecedented run of sessions.

The supply squeeze is partly due to the halt at the Gresik smelter in Indonesia, which processes ore from the giant Grasberg mine and is operated by PT Smelting, jointly owned by Mitsubishi Materials and PT Freeport Indonesia. The smelter will be shut for assessment and repair over the coming weeks after a boiler leak on August 8.

On the other hand, aluminum prices have surged to a seven-week high after Norsk Hydro said its Alunorte refinery in Brazil cut output to half of capacity due to disruptions to natural gas availability. The Middle East accounts for roughly a tenth of global aluminum output and has been affected by the Iran war.