LIVE FUTURES REPORT 21/09: Comex copper price tumbles following Fed meeting

Comex copper prices once again faced heavy selling pressure amid hawkish comments from the US central bank on Thursday September 21.

Copper for December settlement on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange fell 2.25 cents or 0.8% to $2.9465 per oz. Earlier, the contract hit $2.92, the lowest since August 17.

Yesterday, the Federal Open Market Committee (FOMC) decided to leave rates unchanged – as was widely expected – but hawkish language from the central bank sent the dollar higher as it hinted at another rate increase this year.

At the beginning of the year, the policy board expressed a target of three rate rises and December is now seen as the most likely period for lifting rates again.

“The dollar strengthened on account of a more hawkish interpretation of the statement and the subsequent Yellen press conference, pressuring the precious group sharply lower, although both energy, base metals and US equity markets seem to withstand the blowback and hung on to decent gains going into yesterday’s close,” INTL FCStone analyst Edward Meir said.

“However, all three groups are under varying degrees of pressure today,” Meir added.

Meanwhile in the precious metals space, Comex gold for December delivery tumbled $20.30 or 1.5% to $1,296.10 per oz.

Currency moves and data releases 

  • “The more hawkish Fed stance, with FOMC saying it would start reducing its balance sheet from October has given the dollar a boost, with the dollar index rising to 92.55 – we wait to see if that is enough to turn the trend in the dollar, or whether the downward trend will continue to dominate,” Metal Bulletin’s Adams said. 
  • In other commodities, the Texas light sweet crude oil spot price was down 0.55% to $50.14 per barrel. 
  • Here in the USA, HPI in July ticked up 0.2% from last month, below the forecast of 0.4%. Weekly unemployment claims came in at 259,000, an improvement over the previous figure of 284,000. Finally, the Philly Fed manufacturing index in September was 23.8, better than the expectations of 17.3 
  • In addition, ECB president Mario Draghi is speaking.

What to read next
President Trump has threatened to double tariffs on Canadian steel and aluminium to 50%, potentially escalating tensions in US-Canada trade relations. If implemented, this move could have significant economic consequences and may prompt retaliatory actions from Canada. The article examines the potential implications of this tariff hike and its impact on the steel and aluminium industries, as well as the broader trade dynamics between the two nations.
Fastmarkets is launching assessments of the MB-AL-0407 aluminium P1020A premium, cif Mexico, and the MB-AL-0406 aluminium 6063 extrusion billet premium, cif Mexico, on Tuesday March 11, and will also launch an assessment of the MB-AL-0408 aluminium low-carbon differential P1020A, cif Mexico, on Tuesday March 25. After a consultation period, Fastmarkets is launching assessments of the three […]
This price is part of the Fastmarkets Scrap package. For more information on Fastmarkets North America Ferrous Scrap methodology and specifications please click here. To get in touch about access to this price assessment, please contact customer.success@fastmarkets.com.
The publication of Fastmarkets’ nickel sulfate, in-whs Rotterdam assessment for Friday March 7 was delayed because of a reporter error. Fastmarkets’ pricing database has been updated.
The publication of the affected prices was delayed for 31 minutes.  The following assessments were published late: MB-AL-0300 Aluminium 6063 extrusion billet premium, ddp Italy (Brescia region), $ per tonne MB-AL-0302 Aluminium 6063 extrusion billet premium, ddp North Germany (Ruhr region), $ per tonne These prices are a part of the Fastmarkets aluminium billet North Europe package. […]
The US-Ukraine mineral partnership deal has stalled due to security concerns, leaving future negotiations uncertain despite Ukraine's critical role in global mineral supplies. Meanwhile, President Trump has imposed tariffs on Canada, Mexico, and China and launched a copper import investigation to address national security risks and reduce reliance on foreign resources.