Copper looks bullish across recently-published research, though the time horizons differ sharply.
One camp of analysts frames copper as a structural AI story: building out data center and power infrastructure requires enormous volumes of the metal, and the lowest-cost producers sit in emerging markets — a setup that pays off if the broader commodity cycle turns favorable. No specific horizon is attached to that view.
A separate thread of recent research puts a harder number on it: a target of roughly $15,600 per ton by the end of next year, about 10% above current levels. The reasoning: US buyers are stockpiling ahead of expected import tariffs, Chinese demand for refined copper is climbing because scrap supply has gone thin, and inventories outside the US are low. As the US and China compete for a limited pool of metal, the squeeze is expected to tighten prices.
Two different lenses — AI buildout and tariff-driven supply stress — pointing the same direction.