Copper prices on the London Metal Exchange and the Chicago Mercantile Exchange have started to diverge again, echoing the dislocation seen in 2025, as the market positions for an anticipated US Department of Commerce update on refined copper imports due later this month. But this cycle feels different from last year’s frenzy, and not just in scale. It’s shorter, tighter and running directly into a wall of warehouse constraints that didn’t exist when the first wave of metal started heading for the US in early 2025. New Orleans, which currently holds roughly two-thirds of all CME copper stocks, is effectively full. ... (full story)