Copper prices rebounded to $11,556.50/t on the LME, close to this week’s record $11,771/t, as RBC Capital Markets warned that mine disruptions and weak project pipelines mean higher prices are needed to unlock new supply. Analysts link the tight outlook to AI-driven data centre build-out, EV expansion and expectations of a US copper tariff, all adding to structural demand. The move follows a brief 1.3% pullback after Chinese data showed producer prices falling for a 38th consecutive month ahead of a key US rate decision.

Argentina’s Mendoza province has approved the PSJ Cobre Mendocino project, a $559 million joint venture between Zonda Metals and Alberdi Energy, marking its first large-scale mine in over 20 years after Senate endorsement of the environmental impact statement. The Uspallata operation is planned for 40,000 tonnes per year of copper concentrate over a 16-year mine life, using conventional flotation, with construction scheduled for 18–24 months and an estimated 3,900 construction and 2,400 operating jobs. The project now moves into detailed engineering, feasibility, cost and financing analysis before a construction decision.

USA Rare Earth will accelerate commercial production at its Round Top heavy rare earths deposit in Texas to late 2028, two years earlier than planned, after solvent-extraction pilot work enabled its Hydromet demonstration plant in Colorado to start five SX circuits running 2,000–4,000 hours from early 2026. The circuits will focus on dysprosium and terbium while also extracting hafnium and zirconium, feeding into a mine-to-magnet chain that includes a 310,000-square-foot Stillwater, Oklahoma plant targeting nearly 5,000 tonnes of magnets per year from 2026. Shares fell up to 4.3% to $16.56 despite the accelerated schedule.