SMM, February 19: Overnight, LME copper opened at $9,384.5/mt, with its center pulling back during early trading. It bottomed at $9,361/mt during the session before climbing steadily, peaking at $9,485/mt near the close and finally settling at $9,475/mt, up 0.99%. Trading volume reached 15,000 lots, and open interest stood at 295,000 lots. Overnight, the most-traded SHFE copper 2504 contract opened at 76,830 yuan/mt, briefly bottomed at 76,820 yuan/mt in early trading, and then climbed steadily after slight fluctuations, peaking at 77,550 yuan/mt near the close and finally settling at 77,430 yuan/mt, up 0.61%. Trading volume reached 16,000 lots, and open interest stood at 159,000 lots. Macro side, Trump announced that the auto tariff rate would be approximately 25%, with large chip and auto-related enterprises expected to return to the US. Additionally, he may meet with Putin before the end of this month. The uncertainty surrounding Trump's tariff plans and the Russia-Ukraine peace talks reignited risk-aversion sentiment. Gold prices approached historical highs again, and copper prices also rebounded. However, the rise in copper prices was limited due to the upward shift in the US dollar index's center. Fundamentally, copper prices pulled back yesterday, and premiums declined. Market transactions showed some recovery, but current end-use consumption remains weak, and the destocking of social and enterprise inventories is still slow. Overall, with risk-aversion sentiment combined with a recovering market, copper prices are expected to find support today.
