Metals Mostly Fall, Copper Closes Lower Due to Stronger US Dollar [LME Close on March 21]

On Friday, March 21, London Metal Exchange (LME) copper prices fell under pressure due to a stronger US dollar, while US tariff concerns pushed the COMEX/LME copper premium to a record high.

At 17:00 London time (01:00 Beijing time on March 22), the three-month copper contract closed down $81, or 0.82%, at $9,855.50 per mt. The contract had hit a five-month high of $10,046.50 per mt on Thursday.

Natalie Scott-Gray, senior metals analyst at StoneX, said, "Supply concerns stemming from tariff worries, given the US's heavy reliance on copper imports, have been reflected in the COMEX/LME copper price spread."

The analyst added that some traders delivering copper to the US have also led to a re-routing of trade flows or swapping LME deliverable brand copper with producers and consumers for COMEX deliverable brand copper.

Data shows that about 40% of US copper demand is met through imports, including from Canada. On Friday, the COMEX/LME copper premium reached a record high of $1,414 per mt.

On Friday, LME copper on-warrant inventories fell by 3.56% to 117,775 mt, the lowest level since June 2024; currently, the ratio of cancelled warrants for LME copper stands at 48%.

The US dollar strengthened following the US Fed's indication that it has no intention to cut interest rates in the near term. A stronger dollar makes it more expensive for buyers using other currencies to purchase dollar-denominated metals.