A labor deal ending a 10-day strike at Chile’s Minera Centinela coincided with a dip in copper prices Oct. 19, while Reuters reported more metal available in London Metal Exchange (LME) warehouses.
Reuters put the three-month LME copper contract at $14,385 per metric ton at 6:16 a.m. ET (10:16 UTC), down 0.1%. That was an intraday price, not a closing price. The U.S. warehouse inflow was 8,225 metric tons, Reuters said, placing available LME stocks at 147,450 metric tons. Citing exchange data, the outlet described the total as a two-month high.
Minera Centinela said it reached an agreement with two unions whose 709 members account for 22% of Minera Centinela’s own workforce. Their strike began Oct. 7. The company said operations continued during the stoppage but gave no production figure for that period.
The company said the agreement improves workers’ pay and benefits and includes a bonus. Chile’s Dirección del Trabajo said the deal runs for 36 months.
Reuters also reported that concern about possible U.S. duties on refined copper had drawn shipments toward the United States. A July 2025 White House proclamation ordered a review of potential duties, with an update due by June 30, 2026. The proclamation itself did not impose the proposed duties.
Deutsche Bank head of metals research Daniel Ghali saw transport costs and market friction as barriers to large-scale copper exports from the United States even if tariff worries receded, Reuters reported, citing his note.
China, a major copper market, reported faster economic growth alongside a decline in property investment. The National Bureau of Statistics of China said gross domestic product grew 4.5% year on year in the third quarter, compared with 4.3% in the second. Real estate development investment fell 20.6% year on year in the first nine months of 2026. The agency also said domestic demand remained insufficient.
The LME publishes warehouse stock and movement reports daily, providing the next measure of copper available in its registered warehouses.
