Industrial metals

Copper trading: COMEX, the LME and industrial demand

Copper is an industrial metal used in wire, motors and buildings. COMEX and the LME both list copper futures. They are not the same contract. A miner’s share adds the cost of producing the metal.

Written by WiT Markets EditorialReview Editorially reviewedLast reviewed

A specimen of native copper.
Wikimedia Commons contributor, Public domain, via Wikimedia Commons. File page.

Market overview

Electrical infrastructure and construction are the demand core. Mine supply and scrap are the supply core. Exchange stocks are the visible slice of inventory, not the whole of it.

A product should say whether it references COMEX or the LME. Units, brands and delivery differ. Those numbers stay on the exchange pages.

What tends to move it

Construction and grids

Wire and building demand move with activity.

Mine supply

Disruptions and grade matter because new mines are slow.

Exchange stocks

A draw in registered metal is information, not a signal by itself.

The dollar

The contracts are quoted in dollars.

Ways to take the exposure

These are different legal positions. A platform may offer one and not the others. Nothing here is available in every country.

COMEX copper futures

A CME contract. Not an LME warrant.

LME copper

A different unit and delivery system. Read the LME contract.

Mining shares

Ore, costs and jurisdiction, not a cathode.

Funds and CFDs

May track either exchange, or a firm’s own price. The document has to say.

Contract specifications

CME Group

Contract unit, tick and margin are on the exchange page. They are not reprinted here.

Read the exchange page

London Metal Exchange

Contract unit, tick and margin are on the exchange page. They are not reprinted here.

Read the exchange page

Illustrative contract value

Enter the exchange’s price unit, contract size and tick value yourself. Nothing here is a live quote or a margin rate. The arithmetic is valid only when the price and the contract size use the units in that specification. If the contract quotes in cents or in an index, enter the price in that quote unit.

Illustrative notional
Enter the fields
One tick, selected contracts
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Selected tick movement
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What the costs usually are

Two exchanges mean two fee schedules. A physical premium over the exchange price is a further cost in the metal market and is not the futures commission.

What a headline commission leaves out of the bill separates the commission from the spread, financing and other charges.

Risks that belong to this market

Contract confusion

Hedging the wrong exchange leaves basis risk.

Equity is not metal

A copper miner can fall while the metal rises, if costs rise faster.

Inventory headlines

Warehouse metal can move for logistical reasons as well as for demand.

Providers in the commodities directory

The rows come from the existing commodities research note. No second provider list was created. No commercial relationship is recorded on these rows, so the button goes to the firm’s own site. This is not a ranking.

No provider is marked as confirmed for this commodity. A named row means the existing research note uses the commodity’s name. An oil row means the note says oil or crude without saying WTI or Brent. A group row means the firm was filed under the category only. Regions are mentions in that note, not a check that you can open an account.

eToro logo

eToro

Named in the research note

Gold, oil, copper and other commodities primarily via CFDs; commodity ETFs can offer non-CFD exposure

Pricing line. Spread/overnight/product-specific fees

Platforms. Web; mobile

Fees that are not in the note are not shown as zero. Eligibility where you live is not confirmed.

Visit official website
OANDA logo

OANDA

Named in the research note

Hard and soft commodity CFDs including oil, copper, natural gas, corn plus precious metals

Pricing line. Spread-based commodity/metal CFDs

Platforms. OANDA web/mobile; MT4; MT5; TradingView

Fees that are not in the note are not shown as zero. Eligibility where you live is not confirmed.

Visit official website
Plus500 logo

Plus500

Named in the research note

Gold, silver, oil, Brent, heating oil, copper, aluminium and other commodity CFDs

Pricing line. Spread/financing-based CFD pricing; regional products differ

Platforms. Proprietary web/mobile

Fees that are not in the note are not shown as zero. Eligibility where you live is not confirmed.

Visit official website
AvaTrade logo

AvaTrade

Group listing only

Metals, energy and agricultural commodity CFDs depending entity

Pricing line. Spread-based; product/entity-specific fees

Platforms. WebTrader; AvaTrade app; MT4; MT5; AvaOptions

Fees that are not in the note are not shown as zero. Eligibility where you live is not confirmed.

Visit official website
Capital.com logo

Capital.com

Group listing only

65+ commodity CFDs provider-stated across metals, energy and soft/agricultural markets

Pricing line. Spread-based, no commission on cited CFD proposition; other costs apply

Platforms. Capital.com web/mobile; TradingView; MT4/MT5 on current international page

Fees that are not in the note are not shown as zero. Eligibility where you live is not confirmed.

Visit official website
CMC Markets logo

CMC Markets

Group listing only

Commodity CFDs across metals, energy and soft commodities; investing offering differs by region

Pricing line. Spread-based CFD pricing; investing fees region-specific

Platforms. Next Generation; MT4/MT5 in selected regions; mobile/web

Fees that are not in the note are not shown as zero. Eligibility where you live is not confirmed.

Visit official website
FOREX.com logo

FOREX.com

Group listing only

A published range includes crude oil, natural gas, corn and metals.

Pricing line. Spread-based commodity CFDs; financing can apply

Platforms. FOREX.com proprietary; TradingView; MT5/MT4 depending region

Fees that are not in the note are not shown as zero. Eligibility where you live is not confirmed.

Visit official website
IG logo

IG

Group listing only

Commodities including metals, energy and other markets mainly through CFDs/spread betting, plus region-specific investing products

Pricing line. Spread/commission by product/entity

Platforms. IG web/mobile; MT4 in selected regions; ProRealTime integrations

Fees that are not in the note are not shown as zero. Eligibility where you live is not confirmed.

Visit official website
Interactive Brokers logo

Interactive Brokers

Group listing only

Energy, metals, agriculture and related commodity products via futures, ETFs/ETPs and metals

Pricing line. Product/exchange commissions + market-data fees; fund/ETF pricing varies

Platforms. Trader Workstation; IBKR Desktop; Client Portal; GlobalTrader; mobile

Fees that are not in the note are not shown as zero. Eligibility where you live is not confirmed.

Visit official website
Pepperstone logo

Pepperstone

Group listing only

40 spot commodity markets across metals, energies and softs on cited UK page

Pricing line. Spread-based; Razor pricing applies to some products

Platforms. Pepperstone platform; MT4; MT5; cTrader; TradingView

Fees that are not in the note are not shown as zero. Eligibility where you live is not confirmed.

Visit official website
Saxo logo

Saxo

Group listing only

Commodity CFDs, futures, options, spot metals and ETCs across energy, metals and agriculture

Pricing line. Tiered commissions/spreads by product and account tier

Platforms. SaxoInvestor; SaxoTrader; web/mobile

Fees that are not in the note are not shown as zero. Eligibility where you live is not confirmed.

Visit official website
Swissquote logo

Swissquote

Group listing only

Metals, commodity-linked funds/ETPs and derivatives depending account/entity

Pricing line. Product/account-specific fees

Platforms. Swissquote web/mobile; MT4/MT5/CFXD in relevant accounts

Fees that are not in the note are not shown as zero. Eligibility where you live is not confirmed.

Visit official website

Compare selected providers

Select two or three providers. The limit is three.

Calculators

Each tool starts from numbers you type. This page does not send a contract size or a live price into them.

Position size

You type the contract multiplier. This page does not insert one.

Open

Futures margin

Tick value and margin come from the specification you enter.

Open

Risk and reward

A planned payoff. It does not grade the trade.

Open

Profit and loss

A result from prices you type.

Open

Stop and target

Distances you choose, not a market order.

Open

Trading journal

A record of trades you enter.

Open

Trading performance

Figures from the journal, not from a feed.

Open

What a commission leaves out

How spread, fees and financing sit beside a headline commission.

Open

Which copper contract

COMEX and the LME both price copper and they do not price the same obligation. Treating a headline LME stock figure as the value of a COMEX position skips the basis.

Provider notes that say copper are marked named. Notes that say only metals stay in the group list.

Questions

Are LME and COMEX copper interchangeable?

No. Match the contract to the exposure.

Does this page show the copper price?

No.

Sources and review

Written by: WiT Markets Editorial. Writes and structures WiT Markets pages. Separates a sourced fact from a cell that is Not confirmed.

Review: Editorially reviewed. This is not a qualified specialist review and it is not a legal sign-off.

Last reviewed: . Next review due . The date is an editorial pass. It is not a live check of every third-party fee.

Other sources

Methodology. Editorial policy. Corrections. Report an error.

Copper trading: COMEX, LME and contract differences | WiT Markets