Copper futures on the Multi Commodity Exchange (MCX) surged nearly 2% to ₹926.45 per KGM on Wednesday, marking a sharp intraday rally. The sudden spike comes after global copper giant Freeport-McMoRan Inc., the world’s largest listed copper producer, announced a 4% cut in its Q3 copper sales forecast compared to July estimates.
The revision followed a mud rush incident at Freeport’s Grasberg mine in Indonesia, one of the world’s biggest copper and gold deposits. The accident, which killed two workers and left five missing, forced the company to suspend mining operations from September 8 and declare force majeure on several contracts. Freeport also projected a 6% drop in gold sales for the quarter.
With inventories already tight across global exchanges like the London Metal Exchange (LME) and COMEX, the supply disruption has sparked fresh buying interest in copper contracts. Traders are factoring in a potential short-term squeeze in global supply, which has translated into a rally in copper futures.
Analysts say the outlook will depend on how quickly Freeport resumes operations at Grasberg, but for now, the supply shock is creating bullish momentum across global markets.
