The price of copper keeps setting records-and the rally has a lot further to go thanks to historic stockpiling by the U.S. and China.

That's the prediction of Daniel Ghali, Deutsche Bank's new head of metals research.

China has been stashing copper in its strategic reserve for decades, and the threat of U.S. tariffs on imports of the metal is now sucking supplies into American warehouses too. By the end of year, Ghali estimates that the U.S. and China could be sat on 71% of the world's supply.

If the trend continues, copper simply won't be available for users around the world by the end of 2028, according to Ghali's calculations.

He expects that outcome to be averted because high copper prices will prompt some users to switch to aluminum-a cheaper but less-efficient conductor.

But prices aren't yet high enough, Ghali said. He sees copper hitting $10 a pound, or $22,050 a ton, in the second quarter of 2027-up almost 50% from current levels.

Even if the Trump administration decides not to levy tariffs, copper could remain stuck in the U.S. That's because U.S. copper futures trade at a premium to those on the London Metal Exchange.

And the LME has warehouses in the U.S., so if the premium fades, copper may merely be shuffled between different American sites rather than leaving the country to reach industrial users elsewhere.