On September 28, Freeport-McMoRan declined 3.1% overnight, trading at $70.03/share, with turnover of $949,400. The drop comes as the statutory deadline for the US President to decide on refined copper tariffs arrives, injecting significant uncertainty into the copper market.

September 28 marks the 90-day legal deadline following the Commerce Department's June 30 review report on refined copper. The decision at stake is whether to impose a phased 15% tariff on refined copper starting January of next year, rising to 30% the following year. In July of last year, the US imposed 50% tariffs on copper semi-finished products but explicitly exempted refined copper (cathode copper). Market participants had been front-running the expected tariff expansion by shipping copper into the US, pushing COMEX inventories to historic highs while draining London and Shanghai stocks.

Earlier in September, copper stocks and futures fell sharply after reports indicated the White House had not yet decided on the tariff, with Freeport-McMoRan dropping over 7% in a single session. Analysts note that if tariffs are imposed, the US will continue to absorb global copper supply, tightening non-US markets; if not, previously stockpiled copper could be released, posing a major bearish risk.

Within the Copper sector, Southern Copper Corp fell 2.41%, TREKOR METALS fell 2.44%, Ero Copper fell 1.85%, and Idaho Copper Corporation was flat.

(The above content is based on publicly available market information, generated by a program or algorithm, and is intended solely as a stock movement alert. It does not constitute investment advice or a basis for trading decisions.)