(Bloomberg) — Copper futures fell in London after President Donald Trump sowed chaos in metals markets by indicating the US would implement a higher-than-expected 50% tariff on imports of the commodity.
Copper climbed as much as 17% in New York on Tuesday, a record one-day spike to an all-time high, before falling more than 4% in early trading on Wednesday. On the LME, the metal slid as much as 2.4% at the open, before easing to change hands at $9,653 a ton, 1.4% lower, at 1:08 p.m. in Singapore.
The Shanghai Stock Exchange Composite Index rose as much as 0.4% and is set for its highest close since January 2022. Asian shares and US equity-index futures dipped 0.1% while contracts for Europe edged up 0.2%. Treasuries fell and the dollar gained slightly.
Traders are holding back from adding to their portfolios as they gauge the impact of escalating trade tensions, looking for signals on where stocks might head next after reaching record highs last week. Trump showed a renewed determination Tuesday to push ahead with his plans to heavily tax imports after a slew of tariff warning letters on partners such as South Korea and Japan.
“Trump’s recent winning streak —on both the trade and geopolitical front—has effectively lowered his bar for escalating trade tensions, turning tariff threats into endless background noise,” said Hebe Chen, a market analyst at Vantage Markets in Melbourne. “Markets and traders aren’t just fatigued—they’re lost in an ever-thickening foggy forest. For now, the smart move is to stay still and wait for something real to cut through the fog.”
Trump vowed to push forward with his aggressive tariff regime in the coming days, stressing he would not offer additional extensions on country-specific levies set to now hit in early August while indicating he could announce substantial new rates on imports of copper and pharmaceuticals.
The posturing on social media and at a Cabinet meeting on Tuesday came after traders initially shrugged off a series of letters and executive actions Trump issued Monday.
Trump said that despite progress with the European Union on a trade deal, frustration over the bloc’s taxes and fines targeting US technology firms could result in him unilaterally declaring a new tariff rate within the next two days.
Meanwhile, US copper prices posted a record gain in the last session after Trump said he planned to implement a 50% tariff on imports. Benchmark copper futures fell in London on expectations that more supply will end up in other markets.
Elsewhere, China’s factory deflation persisted into a 33rd month while consumer prices unexpectedly rose in June, data showed Wednesday.
The still-weak inflation may keep pressure on policymakers to ramp up stimulus to escape a vicious cycle of falling prices, business profits and wages. Investors are turning their focus to Beijing’s July politburo meeting, for more forceful support measures after the government announced recent efforts to reduce factory overcapacity.
“Domestic investors are building position ahead of the July Politburo meeting and also discussions that there could be some property stimulus,” said Billy Leung, investment strategist at Global X ETFs in Sydney. Overseas investors are also buying the relative under-performance of stocks in the mainland compared with those in Hong Kong, he said.
Corporate News:
- Starbucks Corp. has received proposals from prospective investors in its China business, most of whom are eyeing a controlling stake in the operation.
- Fujitsu Ltd. shares dropped the most since April in Tokyo after the chair of a UK public inquiry called for the firm to release a compensation plan for victims of the Post Office scandal
- Merck is nearing a $10 billion deal for respiratory drugmaker Verona, the FT reported.
Some of the main moves in markets:
Stocks
- S&P 500 futures were little changed as of 6:55 a.m. London time
- Nasdaq 100 futures were little changed
- The MSCI Asia Pacific Index was little changed
- Japan’s Topix rose 0.4%
- Australia’s S&P/ASX 200 fell 0.6%
- Hong Kong’s Hang Seng fell 0.9%
- The Shanghai Composite rose 0.4%
- Euro Stoxx 50 futures rose 0.2%
Currencies
- The Bloomberg Dollar Spot Index was little changed
- The euro was little changed at $1.1717
- The Japanese yen fell 0.3% to 146.96 per dollar
- The offshore yuan was little changed at 7.1831 per dollar
- The British pound was little changed at $1.3591
Cryptocurrencies
- Bitcoin rose 0.1% to $108,793.14
- Ether rose 1.2% to $2,630.38
Bonds
- The yield on 10-year Treasuries advanced one basis point to 4.41%
- Japan’s 10-year yield was little changed at 1.495%
- Australia’s 10-year yield advanced nine basis points to 4.35%
Commodities
- Spot gold fell 0.3% to $3,291.57 an ounce
- West Texas Intermediate crude fell 0.3% to $68.15 a barrel
This story was produced with the assistance of Bloomberg Automation.
–With assistance from Alfred Cang and Joanne Wong.
©2025 Bloomberg L.P.