Chile delivers biggest copper output this year in tight market

Chile posted its best month of copper production this year as the world’s largest supplier of the metal delivers some relief to tight global markets.

The country that accounts for about a quarter of the world’s mined copper churned out 486,574 metric tons in May, up 9.4% from the same month last year, according to data released Monday by statistics bureau INE.

Chile’s biggest monthly haul since December comes as mines recover from a series of operational setbacks and declining ore quality that sent production to 20-year lows. The recovery may help ease a squeeze on stocks at the London Metal Exchange as traders move metal to the US to front-run tariffs proposed by the White House.

Codelco and Antofagasta Plc are among mining companies looking to grow production.

(By James Attwood)