Recently, Freeport-McMoRan Inc. (hereinafter referred to as "Freeport"), the largest copper producer in North America, stated that despite US President Trump's earlier claim that the copper tariffs he threatened to impose could support the US copper industry, the actual outcome might be counterproductive—tariffs could impact the economy, leading to a decline in copper demand, which would in turn be detrimental to the industry. Broad tariffs may instead dampen copper demand In recent times, US President Trump has threatened to impose tariffs on copper to drive the recovery of domestic industries. In late February this year, Trump instructed the US Secretary of Commerce to launch an investigation into foreign copper imports under Section 232 of the Trade Expansion Act and submit a report within 270 days. As the largest copper producer in North America, the imposition of tariffs on copper imports by the US should have been a positive development for Freeport, as the company could profit by selling copper at a premium. However, the company's CEO has warned that tariffs could also have a negative impact on the company. "If global economic growth is hindered, it could impact copper prices," Kathleen Quirk, CEO of Freeport, said in an interview. "Ironically, if we try to build up the US copper industry, slower GDP growth and inflation could put significant pressure on copper mines here." Quirk claimed that the US copper industry is currently in a turbulent period. As many industries and applications, including automotive, consumer electronics, and residential construction, are highly dependent on copper, copper tariffs could impose high costs on various sectors of the US economy. Copper tariffs have both positive and negative implications for the company Under Trump's tariff threats, US copper prices have been pushed higher than those in other markets. Currently, copper prices on the Comex are about 9.3% higher than those on the London Metal Exchange (LME), providing traders and producers with greater incentive to continue shifting supplies to the US before potential copper tariffs take effect. In April this year, the premium for copper on the New York Stock Exchange (NYSE) relative to the LME even reached 13% at one point. At that time, Freeport claimed that such a level was equivalent to a financial benefit of approximately $800 million per year from its copper sales. Freeport owns seven open-pit mines and one smelter in the US, which means it produces about 70% of the refined copper in the country. Quirk stated, "We do benefit from copper tariffs because they raise the price of our copper in the US domestic market... but if there are hefty tariffs and a trade war, we will be concerned about global demand for copper." Quark stated that she maintains a "neutral" stance on copper tariff policies, believing that copper import tariffs have both advantages and disadvantages for her. She noted that Freeport also has copper production sites in Indonesia, Spain, Peru, and Chile, and that tariff-driven trade wars could harm market demand for copper. Compared to tariffs, Freeport has called on the Trump administration to adopt other incentives to promote copper mining in the US, such as the tax credits included in the Inflation Reduction Act—a benefit that US lithium and nickel miners are already eligible for. "The cost structure in the US is higher than globally," Quark said. "Therefore, if you want to protect this industry, you need to consider how to incentivize it."

On Thursday, April 24, copper producer Freeport-McMoRan Inc. released its Q1 financial report on its website. The data showed that the company's consolidated copper production (including sales from both the parent company and subsidiaries) was 868 million pounds, gold production was 287,000 ounces, and molybdenum production was 23 million pounds in Q1. Consolidated copper sales in Q1 were 872 million pounds, exceeding the January estimate of 850 million pounds but lower than the 1.1 billion pounds in Q4 2024, primarily reflecting planned major maintenance at the Indonesia project. Gold sales were 128,000 ounces, below the January estimate of 225,000 ounces and lower than the 568,000 ounces in Q4 last year. Molybdenum sales were 20 million pounds, below the January estimate of 22 million pounds but similar to Q4 last year. For the full year of 2025, the company expects consolidated copper sales to be around 4 billion pounds, gold sales to be 1.6 million ounces, and molybdenum sales to be 88 million pounds. In Q2, copper sales are expected to be 1 billion pounds, gold sales 500,000 ounces, and molybdenum sales 22 million pounds. In Q1, the average realized price for copper was $4.44 per pound, gold was $3,072 per ounce, and molybdenum was $21.67 per pound.

[Freeport Expected to Resume Copper Concentrate Exports from Indonesia This Month] According to foreign media reports on February 13, two informed sources revealed that Freeport-McMoRan Inc. is expected to resume shipments of copper concentrates from Indonesia this month under a new export permit, after the previous permit expired in December. A source directly familiar with the matter stated that the miner will begin loading cargo on Friday and is expected to obtain the export permit by month-end. Another source said that copper concentrates shipped from the company's Grasberg mine are expected to be exported by the end of February. (Webstock Inc.)

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. expressed its optimism over copper demand.

Freeport-McMoRan Inc. said recently that commodity trading giant Glencore proposed to acquire Teck Resources (TECK.US) for $23 billion....