Where the turmoil began
A sudden and coordinated sell-off swept across global commodities during the evening trading session on September 10, Beijing time. Industrial metals on the London Metal Exchange (LME) reversed sharply lower, while precious metals came under significant downward pressure after a sustained rally. This abrupt market action has caught the attention of traders worldwide, prompting questions about what triggered the dramatic shift in sentiment.
Market movers and price action
LME copper prices plunged violently, at one point tumbling more than 3.5% from recent highs, marking one of the steepest single-session pullbacks in recent weeks. The sharp reversal is widely seen as a wave of profit-taking after the metal's relentless climb to record levels. Concurrently, COMEX gold slipped nearly 1%, trading at approximately $4,420 per ounce, while COMEX silver dropped over 3%, hovering around $66.5 per ounce. The collective slide underscores a broad-based correction across the complex.
Context behind the recent surge
Over the past week, international copper prices had maintained an upward trajectory, with the main Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) contract breaking above 112,000 yuan per tonne. LME copper had also scaled fresh all-time highs during this period. Year-to-date, international copper prices have climbed 14%, while over the trailing 12 months, the metal has surged by nearly 45%, reflecting a powerful bull run driven by structural supply concerns and shifting trade flows.
Key driver: tariff expectations and supply dislocation
According to Baocheng Futures, the fundamental catalyst behind copper's earlier rally stems from global supply regional dislocations triggered by U.S. tariff expectations. This has prompted large-scale inventory relocation efforts, drawing down stockpiles in non-U.S. regions to multi-year lows. Combined with tightness at the mine supply level and the onset of the downstream peak demand season, a confluence of bullish factors had propelled prices higher before Thursday's dramatic reversal.