Copper Boom Driven by Chinese Demand

The price of copper ore shot up to a record high riding on the Chinese demand wave. The benchmark copper contract went up by 2.5 % on the London Metal Exchange to a record value of $8,966 per tonne. This went beyond the 2008 record price of $8,940 per tonne.

The widespread use of the metal in manufacturing and construction has made it a vital import for China which is going through a major industrialization phase. If demand for copper from China continues to grow as is the current trend, analysts have predicted that price for the metal may soar by 25% next year.

It is already almost touching $9,000 per tonne and could reach $11,000 as demand grows beyond supply’s capabilities. It is only after the commodities boom in 2004 that copper prices have begun to climb. Till then copper was traded at less than $2,000 per tonne.

As of now the traders are riding the boom in copper prices created by Chinese buyers who stopped waiting for a dip in prices due to urgent need of the resource.