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Informist, Tuesday, Apr. 7, 2026

By Reshma Ravi

MUMBAI – Futures contracts of copper rose on the Multi Commodity Exchange of India and the London Metal Exchange Tuesday on the prospect of stronger demand in China. However, the gains in prices are likely to be capped as market participants are cautious ahead of a deadline set by the US President Donald Trump for Iran to reopen the Strait of Hormuz amid a war in West Asia, analysts said.

COPPER stocks monitored by Shanghai Futures Exchange have been declining since Mar. 20, Reuters reported, citing the exchange's weekly stock report. They have declined more than 30% since Mar. 13 to 301,088 tonnes as of Friday, a sign of stronger demand as prices dropped over growth and inflation fears due to West Asia conflict, and ahead of China's peak demand season. 

However, the gains in copper prices are likely to be capped as market participants are cautious ahead of a deadline set by Trump, analysts said. Trump has repeatedly threatened 'total demolition' of Iran's power plants and bridges if it fails to reopen the Strait of Hormuz by Tuesday night. Iran Monday said it wanted a lasting end to the war with the US and Israel, and pushed back against pressure to reopen the Strait of Hormuz, while Trump warned that the country could be "taken out" if it did not meet his Tuesday night deadline to reach a deal.

Meanwhile, "Aluminium found support after Emirates Global Aluminium said it may take a year before its operations are restored following an Iranian strike," Daniel Hynes, senior commodity strategist at ANZ, said in a note.

However, "Overall, metals markets remain volatile amid fears of geopolitical escalation that could weigh on industrial demand," Kotak Securities said in a note.

At 1659 IST, on the MCX, the April futures contract of:

--ALUMINIUM was at INR 357.1 a kg, up 1%
--Copper was at INR 1,164.6 a kg, up 0.3%
–-LEAD was at INR 195.50 a kg, down 0.4%
–-ZINC was at INR 330.45 a kg, up 2%

--NICKEL was at INR 1,620.0 a kg, down 0.7%

Trading levels for the day on the MCX:
--Aluminium contract seen at INR 350.00-INR 362.00

--Copper contract seen at INR 1,148.00-INR 1,180.00
--Lead contract seen at INR 193.00-INR 197.00

--Zinc contract seen at INR 325.00-INR 335.00

--Nickel contract seen at INR 1,580.00-INR 1,660.00

End

IST, or Indian Standard Time, is five-and-a-half hours ahead of GMT

Edited by Deepshikha Bhardwaj

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