The White House has not yet made a final decision on whether to impose tariffs on refined copper, as officials balance concerns that higher prices for the red metal will increase manufacturing costs with the potential benefits of encouraging more domestic mining operations, according to two sources familiar with the matter.
This hesitation comes at a time when the US administration is increasingly focusing on affordability ahead of the midterm elections in November, as President Donald Trump and Republican lawmakers face pressure to prove that their economic policies contribute to reducing costs for American consumers and companies, rather than increasing them.
Copper prices rose to record levels amid expectations that Trump will impose tariffs on refined copper products, such as cathodes, in addition to copper concentrates produced at mining sites. Traders and industrial buyers are rushing to build inventories in the United States in anticipation of new tariffs, creating one of the largest copper stockpiles in the world.
A White House official said that the administration had not made a final decision on the tariffs, stressing that the Commerce Department had provided President Trump with an update by the deadline set by the White House of June 30.
“The administration continues to evaluate all options for relocating the copper industry and other vital manufacturing industries to the United States,” the official said.
These statements indicate that imposing customs duties is not a settled matter, despite market expectations that the United States may expand the scope of current duties to include refined copper.
The administration is considering imposing tariffs on refined copper as part of Trump's broader efforts to rebuild the American manufacturing base and reduce dependence on foreign supplies of vital materials.
Copper is used in construction, transportation, electronics and many other industries. Standard & Poor's Global expects the growth of the artificial intelligence and defense sectors to increase global demand for copper by 50 percent by 2040.
The United States imports approximately half of its copper needs annually, and has only two operating copper smelters, owned by Freeport-McMoRan and Rio Tinto, respectively.
The proposed tariffs may raise the prices of imported copper and improve the economic viability of mining, smelting and refining projects in the United States. For example, a Rio Tinto executive told Reuters earlier this year that “the current set of mechanisms and tariffs related to copper” do little to alleviate the economic challenges facing the company’s smelter in the United States.
But imposing broader tariffs on copper could also increase manufacturing costs for companies that rely on the metal, including producers of electrical equipment, automobiles, building materials and other industrial goods.
This tension has complicated the US administration's efforts to use tariffs to encourage domestic production, without contributing to increased inflation or undermining Trump's political message about lowering the cost of living. Uncertainty over tariffs is also hampering the flow of copper to markets outside the United States, making global supply tighter.
“As long as the tariff policy remains unresolved, this possibility reduces the incentive to return the metal to international markets,” said Jacob White, a metals analyst at Sport Asset Management, which invests in copper producers.
The expectation of imposing tariffs on copper is reminiscent of what happened in 2025, when the market expected comprehensive duties to be imposed on all products containing this metal. However, in July 2025, Trump backed down from imposing such comprehensive tariffs, and merely imposed fees on pipes, wires, and other semi-manufactured products, which angered companies that extract copper.
Trump assigned Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to submit a report by June on copper markets, along with a recommendation to impose a 15 percent tariff as of January 1, 2027, rising to 30 percent in 2028. It was not immediately clear what Lutnick recommended to Trump.
US imports of refined copper have jumped 16-fold since 2015, despite a 20 percent drop in production, according to data from the US Geological Survey. The country has enough reserves to last nearly 30 years.
During the past year, Trump sought to support American copper projects, including the Resolution Copper project in Arizona, owned by BHP and Rio Tinto, and the Twin Metals project in Minnesota, owned by Antofagasta.
Trump also took steps to ban the export of electronic waste that contains copper.
The British government bond yield for 10 years touched its highest level in more than 19 years, Thursday, with the continuation of the wave of bond selling that began in the previous session, coinciding with the rise in oil prices above $100 a barrel for the first time in six weeks. Which led to an increase in global borrowing costs.
The 10-year bond yield recorded 5.295 percent at 09:30 GMT, which is its highest level since August 2007, rising by about two basis points during Thursday’s trading, according to Reuters.
The two-year bond yield also rose two basis points from Wednesday's closing level, reaching 4.742 percent, which is its highest level since November 2023, while the five-year bond yield rose to 4.828 percent, recording its highest level since September 2023.
The rise in yields came in conjunction with the British Debt Management Office announcing the results of an auction to sell government bonds worth 5 billion pounds ($6.78 billion), due in May 2030 and carrying a return of 4.625 percent. The auction witnessed strong demand; The value of purchase orders reached 16.2 billion pounds sterling.
The average yield on bonds sold at the auction was 4.786 percent, which is the highest yield for bonds with these maturities since October 2023.
On Tuesday, Britain sold standard 30-year bonds through a joint offering, with the highest yield since at least 1998.
Susannah Streeter, chief investment strategist at Wealth Club, said that the recent rise in British bond yields largely reflects global market trends.
She added: “It appears that sharply rising energy prices were the spark behind this recent wave of rising yields, but there has been a deeper structural shift in global capital flows for some time, with some of the world’s largest institutional investors moving away from US Treasuries in search of returns in corporate debt.”
The bunker fuel supply crisis in major shipping hubs has eased despite the impact of the Iranian war, which led to a reduction in exports through the Strait of Hormuz, as the market was able to adapt to previous supply shocks, according to what industry sources participating in the Asia-Pacific Petroleum and Energy Conference (APEC) said on Thursday.
Rishi Nayani, Managing Director of Emirates Maritime Shipping Company, said during a discussion session at the conference: “We do not see any problems in obtaining fuel and supplying it to ships until today,” according to Reuters.
Niani added that there is currently no shortage of bunker fuel, known as marine fuel, in major shipping hubs, unlike the situation that prevailed in March and April, noting that refueling costs have actually risen.
As of this week, prices for very low sulfur fuel oil (VLSFO), the main fuel used in Singapore, the world's largest bunkering hub, had risen more than 60 percent compared to pre-war levels, according to data from market sources.
Prices witnessed a sharp rise after the US-Israeli attack on Iran in late February, and remained volatile during the past six months, but they have now fallen slightly from their record levels recorded in March.
“There is no shortage of fuel oil currently, but there is a state of uncertainty about the possibility of minor supply disruptions,” said Max Tai, head of the heavy products division in Asia at Repsol Refining Company.
Tai added during a similar discussion session: “There are disruptions in supplies from the Strait of Hormuz, but we have alternatives available.”
The challenge, Tai explained, is the uncertainty surrounding securing blend stocks used in bunker fuel production that meet the specifications of certain buyers and markets.
As for the port of Fujairah in the United Arab Emirates, another major center for bunkering, Tai estimated that bunkering activity had returned to about 40 percent of pre-war levels, while bunkering activity in Singapore had remained stable since the beginning of the war.
Niani, a representative of Emirates Maritim, told the committee that some oil was still crossing the Strait of Hormuz despite continued tensions.
“The Strait of Hormuz is not closed,” Niani said. There are approximately 10 to 15 crossings in both directions,” he said, referring to the daily crossings of cargo ships through the Omani corridor on the southern side of the strait. He added: “There is oil being transported.”
However, high fuel prices led to rationing of purchases.
“We can provide replacement drums, but if the price is not right for us or our customers, it won’t go on the market... so the quantities will start to decrease a little bit,” Shen Maozhong, chief operating officer of Equatorial Marine Fuel Management, a ship fuel supplier, said during a separate panel discussion at APEC on Thursday.
“Theoretically, is there an offer?” Chung added. Yes. But will it be put on the market at these prices? Maybe not.”
