The Iran war is creating a “super-squeeze” in industrial metals such as copper and aluminium, say executives and analysts who believe persistent tight market conditions mean prices could be set to stay high for years to come.
The price of copper is close to its all-time closing high while aluminium is at its highest level in four years. Both have been boosted by strong demand from data centres — which use copper for wiring and aluminium for server racks — and for the construction of electric grids and vehicles, while supply has been hit in recent months by the Middle East conflict and the near-closure of the Strait of Hormuz.
The sharp recent moves highlight how the fallout from the US-Israeli war against Iran, now in its fourth month, is ricocheting through commodity markets beyond oil and gas. But unlike energy markets, where there is plentiful global supply, concerns about looming shortages existed in some of these industrial metals before the war.