SHFE non-ferrous metal futures climb further

As of the end of Friday's daytime trading session, the most-traded January 2026 copper futures contract had surged by 6.1% from the previous week to close at Yuan 92,780/tonne ($13,121/t), a record high. The most-traded February 2026 aluminum contract had also risen by 3.5% on week to Yuan 22,400/t, while the most-traded January 2026 nickel contract had edged up by 0.6% to Yuan 11,779/t.

The on-week gains largely stemmed from rising expectations of U.S. interest rate cuts this month and strengthened concerns about tighter copper supply, market analysts said.

According to the latest ADP National Employment Report, U.S. private-sector employment in November fell by 32,000 positions from October to 134.5 million, as against predictions of an increase of 10,000 jobs. The weaker labor data raised concerns about economic softness but also reinforced the likelihood of the U.S. Federal Reserve cutting interest rates later this month.

On the metal supply front, the temporary tightness in copper availability propelled copper futures prices higher. Data from the London Metal Exchange (LME) showed that the volume of cancelled copper inventory warrants on December 3 rose by 50,575 tonnes on day to reach 56,875 tonnes or 35% of total LME stocks, heightening market expectations of a short-term spot supply shortage and driving copper prices higher.

During the same week, the SHFE inventory levels of the three metals showed contrasting movements. As of December 5, copper inventories in SHFE-bonded and standard warehouses had fallen by 9.2% from the previous week to 88,905 tonnes. In contrast, aluminum and nickel stocks increased by 7.3% and 4.2% on week, reaching 123,630 tonnes and 42,508 tonnes respectively.

Written by Iris Pang, pangjunyu@mysteel.com