Copper prices jumped and mining shares surged today as the market absorbed the weekend's 8.8 magnitude earthquake in Chile, the world’s largest producer.
Forward month copper prices spiked nearly 6% — the biggest gain since April on speculation the quake would disrupt shipments.
The earthquake and its aftershocks disrupted over a third of world copper production. In 2009, Chile mined 5.4 million metric tons of the metal last year, or about 34% of global output. Copper prices have more than doubled in the past 12 months as the world economy recovered from its worst postwar recession.
Luke Burgess
Editor, Wealth Daily
