On August 19, LME copper showed a straight-line decline after the close of SHFE copper. In early trading, copper prices consolidated around $13,960/mt. During the session, prices briefly climbed above $13,980/mt before quickly pulling back and falling below $13,900/mt, with the intraday low approaching $13,880/mt. On the inventory front, on August 18, LME copper inventories rose to 235,975 mt, an increase of 12,425 mt from the previous trading day, including 17,000 mt of inflows and 4,575 mt of outflows. Meanwhile, cancelled copper warrants fell to 77,225 mt, a decrease of 18,650 mt from the previous day, and the ratio of cancelled warrants pulled back to 32.73%. The significant increase in LME copper inventories and the simultaneous decline in cancelled warrants indicated that deliverable supply on the exchange had increased somewhat, putting some pressure on high copper prices. Intraday, LME copper came under pressure near the $14,000/mt mark and pulled back quickly. In the near term, the market continues to focus on inventory changes and funding sentiment at elevated levels.

[SMM Shanghai Spot Copper] Tomorrow, the price center of the SHFE copper 2609 contract is expected to move notably lower during the day from the previous trading day, driving the release of downstream dip-buying demand, and purchase sentiment in Shanghai is expected to rebound markedly. SMM has learned that orders for some downstream enterprises have improved notably WoW, and their purchase willingness for copper cathode has strengthened accordingly, with market trading activity picking up somewhat. However, some warrant cargo has gradually flowed into the spot market, increasing the available supply. Suppliers have been continuously lowering their quotes to facilitate transactions, and the downstream's bargaining willingness has been evident, weighing on spot premiums. Meanwhile, the available supply of high-quality copper remains scarce, and the backwardation spread has widened, still providing some support for quotes of certain brands. Overall, under the combined effect of the copper price pullback boosting demand improvement but the outflow of warrant cargo replenishing spot supply, Shanghai spot copper prices against the 2609 contract are expected to maintain a premium tomorrow.

[SMM Analysis: From Aurubis to Nexans and Wieland: Why Are European and US Copper Companies Expanding Recycling Capacity?]European and US copper companies have accelerated investment in recycled raw materials. Copper scrap is therefore becoming more than a supplement to primary copper. It is increasingly viewed as a strategic resource that can improve raw material security, diversify earnings and reduce product carbon footprints.

[SMM Analysis: From Aurubis to Nexans and Wieland, Why Are European and American Copper Companies Collectively Ramping Up Recycled Raw Materials?] In recent years, the copper industry in Europe and the United States has significantly accelerated its push into recycled raw materials, and participants are no longer limited to traditional secondary copper smelters. From integrated smelters such as Aurubis, Boliden, and Glencore to wire-and-cable and copper-processing enterprises such as Nexans and Wieland, different segments of the industry are simultaneously strengthening their capabilities in copper scrap recycling, pretreatment, smelting, and internal recycling. This means the logic behind the development of the secondary copper industry in Europe and the United States is shifting: recycled raw materials are no longer merely a supplement to primary copper supply, but are gradually becoming an important strategic resource for companies to ensure raw material security, stabilize profit sources, and reduce the carbon footprint of their products.

Copper Lake Resources said it has closed a C$1 million financing through secured, non-convertible debentures and attached warrants. The debentures carry a 15% annual interest rate and mature in 12 months, while 5.26 million warrants will be issued at an exercise price of C$0.19 per share for 12 months. Net proceeds will be used to advance exploration at the Marshall Lake project in Ontario, strengthen working capital, settle certain outstanding obligations and for general corporate purposes. Marshall Lake is a high-grade VMS copper-zinc-silver-gold project in Ontario, in which Copper Lake holds an 82.97% interest. The company also owns a 69.79% joint venture interest in the Norton Lake nickel-copper-cobalt-PGM project, where a 2023 NI 43-101 resource outlined 1.795 million tonnes of measured and indicated resources grading 0.72% nickel and 0.69% copper, containing 27.3 million lb of copper. The financing is small and mainly supports exploration and working capital, with no near-term impact on copper supply.

Sweden has rejected appeals against Boliden’s mining concession for the Laver copper project in northern Sweden, allowing the company to advance one of Europe’s potentially significant new sources of domestic copper supply toward the environmental permitting stage. The mining concession, originally granted by Sweden’s Chief Mining Inspector in September 2025, provides the right to extract copper, gold, silver and molybdenum from the Laver deposit. The Swedish government’s August 12 decision rejected two appeals against the concession, removing an important regulatory hurdle for the proposed mine. Laver contains an indicated Mineral Resource of approximately **849.5 million tonnes grading 0.24% copper**, according to Boliden’s 2025 resource statement. The company estimates that development of the project could **roughly double Sweden’s copper production** and increase Europe’s copper self-sufficiency by approximately **10%**. The project is not yet approved for construction or production. Boliden will now proceed with its application for an environmental permit, while additional technical and regulatory work will be required before an investment decision can be made. From a longer-term supply perspective, progress at Laver is significant as Europe seeks to increase domestic production of critical raw materials and reduce its reliance on imported copper. Although production remains several years away, removal of the concession appeals improves the project’s development pathway and could ultimately support a meaningful increase in European mined copper supply.

August 13, 2026 The Chinese gold market showed a clear dichotomy in the first half of 2026: whilst demand for jewellery slumped amid record prices, physical investment products recorded strong growth. According to data from the China Gold Association (CGA), China’s total consumption rose slightly by 1.23 per cent to 511.41 tonnes (previous year: 505.21 tonnes). Investment demand offsets slump in jewellery High gold retail prices and changes to tax rules had a noticeable dampening effect on consumers. Nevertheless, there was a significant shift towards physical assets as a store of value: • Jewellery: −33.88 per cent to 132.13 tonnes • Bullion & coins: +28.42% to 339.34 tonnes • Industry & other: −2.90% to 39.94 tonnes Retail investors made targeted use of price corrections to make additional purchases via domestic banks. As a result, the investment sector more than fully offset the slump in the jewellery sector. Domestic production slumps – strategic focus on physical metal In parallel with the shift in demand, domestic supply contracted: China’s mining output from its own raw materials fell by 14.62 per cent to 152.91 tonnes. The main cause was regulatory environmental requirements and safety inspections, which led to temporary shutdowns. By contrast, the processing of imported ores rose by 4.62 per cent to 77.08 tonnes. Overall, domestic production thus fell by 9.01 per cent to 229.99 tonnes. For commodity investors, market expert Willem Middelkoop ( Commodity Discovery Fund ) places these developments within a broader macroeconomic context. He sees a familiar pattern in China’s approach: the state is systematically using price dips to make strategic purchases – much as it has done with oil and copper. Middelkoop does not interpret the recent consistent restriction by major Chinese banks on retail investors’ access to leveraged paper and futures trading on the Shanghai Gold Exchange (SGE) as a market crisis. Rather, he sees it as a state-directed measure to defuse speculative overheating and a targeted redirection of private capital away from paper-based derivatives towards physically backed holdings. By curbing leveraged trades, financial institutions are reducing systemic risks in the domestic market and forcing capital to be tied up directly in physical assets. China thus remains the key driver of the global market: whilst high prices are dampening cyclical jewellery consumption, they are accelerating the strategic, long-term accumulation of physical metal. Against the backdrop of declining domestic production, this development is simultaneously exacerbating China’s structural dependence on imports of raw gold and ores – a trend that is likely to increasingly constrain physical liquidity on Western trading markets. Source： https://goldinvest.de/en/china-s-appetite-for-gold-is-growing-investors-are-increasingly-turning-to-gold-bars-and-coins

[SMM Analysis: High Copper Prices Curb Demand, Copper Scrap Payable Indicators Diverge] No.1 and No.2 copper were affected by maintenance at some smelters, the consumption off-season, and high copper prices, which slowed down procurement demand and caused transaction payable indicators to pull back somewhat. As of mid-August, the payable indicator for No.1 copper transactions pulled back to around 96%-97%, with US No.2 copper at about 95.5% and European No.2 copper mainly at 94.5%-95%. In contrast, given still-tight supply and strong direct substitution properties for copper cathode, bare bright copper found notable downside support, and its quoted payable indicator held at a high of 98.5%-99% without visible loosening.

On the macro front , copper prices rose first and then fell this week, with the price center lifting WoW. US July nonfarm payrolls unexpectedly fell by 23,000, significantly weaker than expected; however, CPI fell to 3.4% YoY and core CPI declined to 2.5%, with inflation largely in line with market expectations, easing concerns about inflation exceeding expectations. In addition, the slowdown in US July PPI growth exceeded expectations, and traders reduced bets on a US Fed rate hike in September, with the latest probability at 32%; LME copper bottomed out. Domestically, the People's Bank of China said it would strengthen counter-cyclical adjustment, promptly plan and introduce incremental policies, and step up efforts to expand domestic demand, providing some support to market sentiment. Geopolitically, US-Iran negotiations and arrangements for navigation through the Strait of Hormuz continued to swing back and forth, with all parties sending different signals on ceasefire deadlines, safe shipping routes and control of the strait. The situation in the Middle East remained highly uncertain, prompting copper prices to fluctuate at high levels. As of 9:00 a.m. Beijing time on August 14, 2026, LME copper touched a weekly high of $14,262/mt, then fell to a low of $13,955/mt, down $307/mt from the high, a decline of about 2.15%; the most-traded SHFE copper contract touched a low of 107,130 yuan/mt, then rose to a high of 108,740 yuan/mt, up 1,610 yuan/mt from the low, a gain of about 1.50%. Fundamentals side , as of August 13, SMM copper inventories in major Chinese regions fell by 2,200 mt from last Monday to 116,700 mt, and total inventories were 8,900 mt lower than the 125,600 mt recorded in the same period last year. Domestic inventories remained at relatively low levels. Supply side, typhoon weather briefly affected cargo flows in east China at the start of the week; as of August 14, open interest in the SHFE copper 2608 contract was 11,615 lots, equivalent to 58,000 mt of metal content; over the same period, registered copper warrants on the SHFE stood at 27,200 mt, and potential deliverable volume was about 2.1 times warrant volume. Open interest in nearby contracts remained significantly higher than current registered warrants; combined with the upcoming delivery, this widened inter-month backwardation and lifted position-rolling costs for suppliers. Suppliers showed greater willingness to sell for cash, boosting spot supply in circulation. Of these, high-quality copper supply remained relatively limited, while non-registered copper supply was ample, and brand differentiation continued. Import side, the nearby LME backwardation structure widened, while the SHFE/LME price ratio for imports weakened; downstream purchase willingness remained low, and actual market deals were sluggish. Demand side, the traditional consumption off-season combined with high copper prices meant downstream users still mainly made just-in-time procurement, and overall transactions showed no significant improvement. For secondary copper, tax-inclusive supply tightened and invoice costs rose; scrap utilization enterprises pushed for lower prices, and the price difference between copper cathode and copper scrap stayed high. Looking ahead to next week , on the macro front, US employment data weakened significantly, CPI and PPI pointed to easing inflation pressures, market expectations for a September rate hike continued to decline, and expectations for domestic incremental policy will also continue to support copper prices. If US economic data strengthen again and the US Fed sends further hawkish signals, renewed rate hike expectations and a stronger US dollar will pressure copper prices. Fundamentals side, COMEX inventories continued to increase, while LME inventories and deliverable stocks continued to decline; supply outside the US tightened, supporting LME copper. In China, after delivery of the SHFE copper 2608 contract ends, nearby open interest pressure will ease and the inter-month backwardation will gradually narrow; domestic copper production and imported arrivals will increase, and combined with the consumption off-season and high copper prices, upside room for SHFE copper will be limited. In the short term, fundamentals will dominate the divergence between SHFE and LME, while macro expectations will mainly provide bottom support for copper prices. Overall, LME copper is expected to trade at $13,950-$14,150/mt next week, and the most-traded SHFE copper contract is expected to trade at 107,000-108,500 yuan/mt. Support for LME copper is stronger than for SHFE copper; LME copper is expected to rise, and SHFE copper will follow with modest gains, with LME outperforming SHFE overall.

Tertiary Minerals Plc has completed its Phase 4 drilling programme at Target A1 within the Mushima North Project in Zambia, with early portable X-Ray Fluorescence (pXRF) results identifying further copper mineralisation and supporting previously identified higher-grade zones.​ The Phase 4 programme comprised 3,639 m of drilling across 39 holes. Early results included an intersection of 15 m grading 0.53% copper from 100 m depth, including 7 m at 0.77% copper. Additional intersections included 4 m at 0.68% copper and 8 m at 0.62% copper, while broader infill intersections returned 65 m at 0.23% copperand 83 m at 0.16% copper.​ Mushima North is a polymetallic silver-copper-zinc prospect located within Zambia’s prospective Iron-Oxide-Copper-Gold region, approximately 28 km east of the historic Kalengwa copper-silver mine. The latest drilling supports the previously identified near-surface Exploration Target of 15–30 million tonnes grading 40–60 g/t silver equivalent, while also providing further indications of higher-grade copper and silver mineralisation within the target area.​ Samples from the drilling programme have been submitted for independent laboratory testing, with certified results expected to be released as they become available. Remaining pXRF results from the final nine holes are also expected, covering additional infill drilling at Target A1 and exploration of mineralisation west of Target A1 and at Target A2.​ With Phase 4 drilling now complete, the project is moving into its next stage of technical evaluation. Initial metallurgical testwork is expected to commence shortly, followed by data compilation and resource modelling. Tertiary Minerals is targeting the delivery of a JORC-compliant Mineral Resource Estimate for Mushima North before the end of 2026, which would provide a clearer assessment of the scale and grade distribution of the mineralised system following the latest drilling campaign.