BARRICK Mining Corp. was confident of copper’s long-term prospects despite market turbulence from new US trade barriers, said Reuters citing the miner’s CEO Mark Bristow.
The world’s second-largest gold producer is pressing ahead with ambitious expansion plans in Zambia, where it aims to double production at its Lumwana mine by 2028, the newswire said on Friday.
Speaking in Lusaka, Bristow acknowledged that US President Donald Trump’s proposed 50% copper tariff would create short-term market instability. The levy, announced on Wednesday and set to take effect from August, is designed to boost domestic American production of the strategic metal, said the newswire.
US Comex copper futures surged to record highs following the tariff announcement, though analysts warn prices elsewhere could fall as major suppliers like Chile redirect shipments to alternative markets.
“The US is a modest driver of global copper demand accounting for about 10% (1.7 million tons) of refined demand,” said UBS in a note to clients. “But the impact of tariffs has created distortions in the global copper trade as the increasing premium for US copper (Comex) versus LME (London Metal Exchange) has attracted inflows to the US, reducing availability of metal in other key markets,” he said.
“The copper price is going to be unstable just like everything else in the world, and we will have to get out of this instability,” Bristow told journalists.
But he dismissed concerns about longer-term market fundamentals, citing growing demand from data centres, clean energy transitions, and industrial development across emerging economies. “Everyone is in agreement that the copper demand is outgrowing the supply side,” he said, noting that most competitors were pursuing only modest capacity increases.
Barrick’s $2bn investment programme will boost annual output at Lumwana from current levels to 240,000 tons within four years, whilst extending the mine’s operational life until 2057. The Toronto-listed company views the expansion as strategically timed ahead of what Bristow described as a “tightening” supply situation in global copper markets.
Earlier this week the billionaire founder of Ivanhoe Mines, Robert Friedland, voiced his support for the Trump administration’s proposed 50% tariff on copper imports, arguing they will strengthen America’s strategic position.
Speaking to the Financial Times, Friedland characterised the tariff as necessary to highlight dangerous supply chain vulnerabilities. He argued that access to critical raw materials underpins both climate initiatives and national defence capabilities.
He also praised current US government attitudes toward mining as refreshingly supportive after decades of regulatory hostility. The shift from globalised supply chains toward domestic security reflected preparations for potential military conflicts requiring substantial raw material stockpiles, said Friedland.
