Copper Prices Extend Last Year’s Gains as S&P Warns of Global Supply Deficit

S&P estimates a newly discovered copper deposit can take as long as 17 years to become an operating mine.

Copper pipes are displayed in a home rebuilding store in New York, on July 9, 2025. Spencer Platt/Getty Images

Copper prices rose 2 percent on Jan. 9, extending last year’s gains as S&P Global warned the industry faces a widening supply deficit over the next decade.

On the New York Mercantile Exchange, copper futures added $0.108, or almost 2 percent, to $5.91 per pound. Over the past 12 months, the red metal has soared 34 percent.