Copper edges higher on signs of severe concentrate shortages

By Reuters News04:05 (UTC), 19 October 2026 Updated

Oct 19 (Reuters) - Copper edged higher on Monday amid signs of severe shortages of copper concentrate, while the end of a strike at a major Chilean mine eased some immediate supply concerns.

Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange rose 0.31% to $14,452.50 a metric ton by 0330 GMT, while the most-traded November copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange gained 0.41% to 109,900 yuan ($16,447)a ton.

Chilean miner Antofagasta ANTO.L recently sold copper concentrate from its Centinela mine at a treatment charge of minus $310 a ton, while another tender for material from Los Pelambres yielded charges in the minus $330s, Reuters reported on Friday.

The deeply negative charges mean smelters are paying miners to process their concentrate, highlighting acute shortages of the raw material ahead of annual supply contract negotiations for 2027.

The shortages have been exacerbated by disruptions at major copper mines and rapid expansion of smelting capacity in China, which has grown more than 70% over the past decade to an estimated 13 million to 14 million tons this year.

Meanwhile, workers at Antofagasta's Centinela mine ratified a new labour agreement, ending a strike that began on October 7. The company said production remained normal during the stoppage.

In top consumer China, the economy expanded 4.5% year-on-year in the third quarter, beating a 4.4% forecast in a Reuters poll, powered by strong exports and factory activity, which offset weakness in demand at home. But fixed-asset investment fell 7.2% in the first nine months, while property investment slumped 20.6%.

Copper inventories in warehouses monitored by the SHFE , however, rose 25.9% from the previous week to 73,962 tons as of Friday.

Among other LME metals, aluminium was unchanged, zinc rose 0.08%, lead fell 0.21%, nickel gained 0.40% and tin advanced 0.44%.

On the SHFE, aluminium rose 0.71%, zinc gained 0.59%, lead fell 0.40%, nickel climbed 1.12% and tin advanced 0.64%.

($1 = 6.6818 Chinese yuan renminbi)