Copper prices fell on Friday off three-month highs after weak economic data from China and amid profit-taking, but the losses were stymied due to a supply shortage.

Copper three-month futures fell 0.5% at the London Metals Exchange to $9855 a ton, after touching March 27 highs earlier at $9917.

Recent Chinese data showed industrial sector profits fell sharply in May as factory activities slowed down.

However, analysts note that a variety of industrial activity dependent on copper remains strong, such as spending on electrical networks, which surged 19% in the first five months of 2025.

Copper futures conversely rose 1.5% at the Shanghai exchange to 79,920 yuan, just shy of March 31 highs as well.

Recent data showed Shanghai inventories are down by 19% last week to 81,550 tons of copper, a 70% decline in the past four months.

London copper inventories also fell by 66% in the same period.

In the US, copper Comex futures fell 1.2% to $5.06 a pound, marking a price premium of $1311 a ton compared to the London contract.

As for other metals: 

Aluminum fell 0.1% to $2580 a ton

Zinc shed 0.5% to $2755

Lead lost 0.3% to $2033

Nickel was unchanged at $15,210

Tin rose 0.5% to $33930 

Bitcoin lost modest ground on Friday, relinquishing some earlier gains as the risk appetite softened amid uncertainty about the Federal Reserve’s monetary policies. 

The world’s most valuable cryptocurrency marked modest gains this week alongside other cryptocurrencies following the Israel-Iran ceasefire.

Bitcoin dipped 0.3% to $107,542 this morning, on track for a weekly profit of 5%. 

Despite the calm following the Israel-Iran ceasefire, uncertainty about the Federal Reserve’s independence and its future interest rate plans hurt the risk appetite.

Trump once again criticized Powell for refusing to cut interest rates, and asserting Powell will leave his position soon.

Powell told the Senate of the need to be cautious with monetary policies, as Trump’s tariffs represent a risk to inflation.

Powell warned that while Trump’s tariffs could cause a one-time hike in prices, the risk of sustained inflation is big enough to force the Fed into more caution about rate cuts.

The Wall Street Journal reports that Trump is considering choosing and announcing his successor by September or October as a way to undermine him.

Bitcoin Grabs Headlines Once More 

Bitcoin continues to grab glocal headlines, with some Indian politicians calling for buying bitcoin as a strategic reserve. 

This is part of an increasing global trend among governments and institutions to expand bitcoin adoption as a reserve and maybe even a safe hafe of sorts. 

It’s charting a similar story to gold in its earlier reserve days worldwide, with bitcoin likely going on a similar acceptance path as a value store. 

Trump once again criticized Powell for refusing to cut interest rates, and asserting Powell will leave his position soon.

Powell told the Senate of the need to be cautious with monetary policies, as Trump’s tariffs represent a risk to inflation.

Powell warned that while Trump’s tariffs could cause a one-time hike in prices, the risk of sustained inflation is big enough to force the Fed into more caution about rate cuts.

The Wall Street Journal reports that Trump is considering choosing and announcing his successor by September or October as a way to undermine him.

Strong Institutional Demand

Bitcoin is buoyed by rapidly increasing institutional demand, with SoSoValue data showing net investments into bitcoin sport ETFs at $547 million, with total weekly inflows amounting to $1.49 billion so far.

Otherwise, major corporations continue to add to their bitcoin holdings, with Japan’s MetaPlanet adding 1234 units on Thursday, raising its total holdings to 12,345 units.

PtoCap BTC also bought 1208 bitcoins, raising total holdings to 4932 units.

The US dollar fell to near 3-? year lows against both the euro and sterling on Friday as traders bet on multiple Fed rate cuts this year, while waiting for the results of US trade negotiations with major partners before the July deadline. 

The euro was boosted after recent French data showed consumer prices rose more than expected in June.

The euro rose 0.2% to $1.17208, approaching September 2021 highs at $1.1745.

Sterling traded at $1.3742, slightly off October 2021 highs at $1.37701.

Trump Versus Powell 

Trump once again criticized Powell for refusing to cut interest rates, and asserting Powell will leave his position soon.

Powell told the Senate of the need to be cautious with monetary policies, as Trump’s tariffs represent a risk to inflation.

Powell warned that while Trump’s tariffs could cause a one-time hike in prices, the risk of sustained inflation is big enough to force the Fed into more caution about rate cuts.

The Wall Street Journal reports that Trump is considering choosing and announcing his successor by September or October as a way to undermine him.

Sixth Straight Monthly Loss

The US dollar index is heading for a 2.3% loss in June, the lowest since March 2022, and marking the sixth monthly loss in a row.

The dollar index is down 10% so far this year, but it faces even more pressures as the Federal Reserve gears up towards multiple interest rate cuts this year.

Otherwise, a weaker dollar pushed the Aussie to a seven-month peak at $0.6564 on Thursday.

Other emerging currencies also surged, with the Taiwanese dollar up to April 2022 highs. 

Fed Rates

Fed official Michelle Bowman said on Monday that the time for an interest rate cut is approaching amid potential risks to the labor market. 

The odds of a Fed 0.25% rate cut at the July meeting rose from 15% to 23% according to the Fedwatch tool.

The odds of a Fed September rate cut rose from 68% to 78%. 

The bonds market is mostly stable, with two-year US treasury yields down 0.01% to 3.77%.

Gold prices fell on Friday on track for the second weekly loss in a row as haven demand receded after the Israel-Iran ceasefire and the progress in US-China trade talks.

Gold spot prices fell 1.2% to $3288 an ounce, marking a weekly drop of 2.3%, while US gold futures fell 1.4% to $3300.

Improving Risk Appetite Pressures Gold

As the Middle East tensions calm down, with both Iranians and Israelis resuming their normal lives after 12 days of the worst military confrontation ever between both countries, demand on gold and other safe havens took a hit.

US-China Rare Earth Minerals Agreement 

White House officials said the US reached an agreement with China to accelerate shipments of rare earth minerals to the US.

Now investors await US Core Personal Consumption Expenditure data later today, crucial for Fed’s monetary policies. 

Analysts expect a 0.1% monthly increase and a 2.6% yearly increase. 

US Interest Rates

Markets currently expect US interest rates to be down by 63 basis points this year, starting September.

As for the performance of other precious metals:

Spot silver prices fell 0.5% to $36.44 an ounce

Platinum lost 2.8% to $1378 an ounce away from 11-year highs

Palladium rose 0.3% to $1135 an ounce, the highest since October 2024