NEW YORK, March 19. /TASS/. The United States can become flooded by record volumes of copper in the coming weeks as the President Trump’s administration is considering potential tariffs on supplies of this metal, Bloomberg reported citing sources.
"Between 100,000 and 150,000 metric tons of refined copper is expected to arrive in the US in the coming weeks," the agency wrote referring to the sources. As they note, if the full volume arrives within the same month, it would surpass the all-time record of 136,951 tons set in January 2022.
According to experts, traders are rerouting large volumes of copper to the United States that were originally intended for Asia. Additional warehouse space is being booked in the port cities of New Orleans and Baltimore to accommodate the cargo.
The agency stresses that the sharp influx of foreign copper into the United States is depleting supplies in other markets, including China, the world's largest consumer of the commodity, "leaving the Asian nation at a disadvantage," the agency said.
According to the International Copper Study Group, China purchased about 40% of the world's refined copper last year.
Economists at Goldman Sachs, one of the world's largest banks, expect the United States to impose import duties on copper at a rate of 25% by the end of the year.
In late February, Trump instructed Commerce Secretary Howard Lutnick to consider imposing duties on copper supplies to the United States. Lutnick, in coordination with the heads of the Pentagon, the Department of the Interior and the Department of Energy, will review copper supplies to the United States from other countries for their impact on national security. The results of the inspection may lead to the introduction of duties on its import. It is expected that the head of the Commerce Secretary will submit a report on the results of the inspection to Trump no later than 270 days after the signing of the decree.