Copper price and mining shares drop as global trade war threats heat up

As tensions between China and the US heat up, soybean and corn are not the only commodities feeling the burn.

The price of copper, which has already been under pressure, dropped by about two per cent to $6,668.50 a tonne on the London Metal Exchange today.

"Uncertainties arising from global trade war potential are causing copper developers to hesitate on future supply... price volatility and deteriorating US-China trade relations are constraining demand for the metal," analysts at SP Angel said in a note today.

Shares in miners also fell, with top copper producers Anglo American, Antofagasta, BHP Billiton and Rio Tinto each down between two and three per cent.

China, the world's top copper consumer, today announced it would slap retaliatory tariffs on $50bn (£36bn) worth of US goods, including vehicles and soybeans, stepping up trade war threats between the two countries.

Jasper Lawler, head of research at London Capital Group, said: "Industrial metals could get directly tangled up in trade war with higher tariffs into China and a trade war would likely dampen economic growth, meaning less commodity demand. The price of oil, often a barometer for expected global demand, hit a 2-week low."

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