A Detailed Look Back at LME Week London – Part 2 – Panel Sessions

Over the course of LME Week London, StoneX was asked to participate in a number of events, including presenting and debating in the LME Seminar Metals Debate and Shanghai Metals Market panel session. In this article, we provide StoneX view on key questions that were asked over the course of the week.?

?Panel Themes and Questions for LME Seminar and Shanghai Metals Market?

1.?? ?What major macroeconomic and/or political factors will have a significant impact on the commodities market in the months ahead, and next year? Are we in for a recession or a recovery in 2025?

2.?? ?What are the potentially ‘hidden’ and underappreciated risks?

3.?? ?What impact do you anticipate the US election having on your metal, if any, in terms of trade & tariffs, ESG approach etc?

4.?? ?What does the interest rate cut cycle mean for commodities? Will rate cuts start to kick in and trigger an improvement in manufacturing activity?

5.?? ?Do you expect low-carbon premiums to emerge/do they exist in your metal? At the moment, there’s a real reluctance to pay more. Will consumers pay up?

6.?? ?Copper is the favourite base metal for many investors. What do you expect for the copper market for the remainder of this year and next year? ?Copper concentrate market remains tight, any potential changes in the short period?

7.?? ?If copper prices rise significantly in the future, will aluminium replace more copper?

8.?? ?Some metals remain oversupply, like cobalt and nickel. Do you think this situation will persist?

9.?? ?The energy transition is a major driver for copper, aluminium and other battery metals demand. As many countries put more tariffs on Chinese EV/solar panels and at the same time European EV market remains weak, how do you see the future of the energy transition impacting base metal demand? Will the trading war become even worse?