Copper prices extend six-day rally as China inventories fall
Freeport and Hudbay shares rise as Chinese physical premiums climb and SMM reports a weekly inventory draw of 14,500 tonnes.
Mara Quinlan· Sep 23, 2026
Freeport-McMoRan Inc. NYSEFCX gained on Tuesday as Bloomberg reported London copper prices advancing for a sixth day toward a record amid tightening Chinese supplies. In July, the miner estimated that each US$0.10 change in the second-half average copper price shifts operating cash flow by US$150 million.
Freeport shares rose 2.1 per cent to US$73.66 at 9:53 a.m. Eastern on the New York Stock Exchange, according to Nasdaq data. Hudbay Minerals Inc. TSEHBM NYSEHBM gained 2.4 per cent to C$38.29 at 9:39 a.m. Eastern in Toronto, according to TMX.
December copper futures rose 1.5 per cent to US$6.8635 a pound on COMEX at 8:43 a.m. Central on Tuesday, CME Group's delayed data showed. The contract's previous settlement was US$6.7625 a pound.
Inventories across China's main regions fell to 74,800 tonnes on Sept. 21, down 14,500 tonnes over the week, according to Shanghai Metals Market. SMM said buying ahead of the Mid-Autumn Festival and National Day holidays was adding to demand while limited deliveries replenished warehouses.
"Although some imported copper arrived gradually, most of it flowed directly to downstream processing enterprises and did not enter warehouse statistics," SMM said in its Tuesday report.
That routing leaves less imported metal available for warehouse buyers even as shipments enter China. The inventory figures measure copper in surveyed storage locations, rather than all material held by factories.
Shanghai's average spot premium over the October futures contract reached 825 yuan a tonne on Sept. 21, up 90 yuan from the preceding trading day. The premium is the additional price buyers pay for physical copper over the futures benchmark.
SMM also recorded near-month futures trading 400 to 470 yuan a tonne above the following month on Sept. 21. That premium for earlier delivery provides another measure of the immediate supply squeeze.
The cash-flow sensitivity Freeport published in its July 23 results applies to average prices over the second half of 2026. Its forecast assumed copper at US$6 a pound, so Tuesday's futures quote cannot by itself establish an increase in the company's full-year cash flow.
Hudbay maintained guidance for 110,000 to 138,000 tonnes of copper production in its July 29 results. Its Canadian and Peruvian operations also produce gold, which supplied 38 per cent of second-quarter revenue and gives shareholders exposure to another metal alongside copper.
Mugglehead's Sept. 8 coverage examined an earlier record-setting London rally driven partly by tariff-related movements of copper into the United States. Tuesday's SMM figures add evidence of tight physical availability in China.
Read more: Copper prices reach record on tariff fears and supply woes
The next LME warehouse-stock update is due at 9 a.m. London time on Sept. 23, under the exchange's daily publication schedule.
