METALS-Copper hits one-week high amid weak dollar, tin at record high

By Polina Devitt

LONDON, Jan 23 (Reuters) - Copper prices rose on Friday, getting support from a weaker dollar, growth in other metals and setting aside for now signs of rising stock availability for nearby supply.

The benchmark three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange CMCU3 gained 3.2% to $13,164 a metric ton by 1705 GMT after hitting a one-week high of $13,182. The metal set a record high of $13,407 on January 14.

The U.S. dollar headed for its steepest weekly drop since June as geopolitical tensions unsettled investors. A weaker U.S. currency makes the dollar-priced metals more attractive for buyers using other currencies. FRX/

Providing some support from the supply side, Capstone Copper CS.TO said that a workers' strike had forced a production halt at its Mantoverde mine in Chile.

However, record December copper production in top metals consumer China and high prices saw the Yangshan copper premium SMM-CUYP-CN, a gauge of Chinese appetite for copper imports, stabilising at $22 a ton, its lowest since mid-2024.

The premium of the Comex copper contracts against the LME ones 0#LMECMXCU: has narrowed down sharply this week, prompting deliveries to the LME-registered warehouses in the U.S. MCUSTX-TOTAL, while copper inventories in warehouses monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose 6%.

Washington refrained from imposing any tariffs when announcing the results of its critical metals review in mid-January.

This review has significantly weakened the case for copper tariffs, although it cannot be fully ruled out, analysts at Macquarie said in a note. Copper is subject to a separate review in the U.S. due by mid-2026.

Copper stocks of the three exchanges are at 905,069 tons, the highest level since 2018, with more than half of them in the U.S. Comex warehouses.

Indicating rising availability of the metal for nearby supply, the spread between the LME cash copper contract and the benchmark CMCU0-3 swung to a discount of $83 a ton on Thursday, its widest since September, from a premium of $102 on Tuesday. The discount was last at $74 on Friday.

In other LME metals, tin CMSN3 jumped 8.1% to $55,385 a ton after hitting a record high of $56,920. Tin is driven by speculative buying, while the physical "demand is melting down", said a metals trader.

Aluminium CMAL3 rose 1.4% to $3,176, zinc CMZN3 climbed 1.8% to $3,270, lead CMPB3 edged 0.5% higher to $2,030, while nickel CMNI3 was up 3.1% at $18,540.