Copper Pipe Prices Soar Over 30%, Forcing Firms To Try Alternatives Materials
Specialty contractors in the U.S. that use extensive amounts of copper-based products have been squeezed in recent months, as never before, by sharp rises in copper prices. But now there are some indications that the copper price spike may have peaked.
"The acute tightness in the market right now is probably about as bad as it is going to get," says John Mothersole, the Washington, D.C.-based copper specialist for construction forecasting firm Global Insights Inc. He notes that after a few years of excess capacity, copper supply has been exhausted by global economic recovery, particularly large demand from China. This created a supply shortfall of 270,000 tonnes in 2003 that will jump to 550,000 tonnes this year. The price of copper cathode also rose from 76¢ per lb then to $1.29 today.