{"id":66558,"date":"2026-08-14T21:38:13","date_gmt":"2026-08-15T01:38:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/global-markets-update-copper-hits-record-highs-amid-supply-crunch-apple-warned-on-chinese-chips\/66558\/"},"modified":"2026-08-14T21:38:13","modified_gmt":"2026-08-15T01:38:13","slug":"global-markets-update-copper-hits-record-highs-amid-supply-crunch-apple-warned-on-chinese-chips","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/www2.stockmarketwatch.com\/stock-market-news\/global-markets-update-copper-hits-record-highs-amid-supply-crunch-apple-warned-on-chinese-chips\/66558\/","title":{"rendered":"Global Markets Update: Copper Hits Record Highs Amid Supply Crunch; Apple Warned on Chinese Chips"},"content":{"rendered":"<h2>Key Takeaways<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><strong>Copper prices reached an unprecedented weekly closing high<\/strong> as a supply crunch in the Democratic Republic of Congo and aggressive U.S. stockpiling drove futures to approximately <strong>$6.90\/lb<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Washington has warned Apple (<a href=\"\/stock\/AAPL\">AAPL<\/a>)<\/strong> against using memory chips from the blacklisted Chinese firm <strong>ChangXin Memory Technologies (CXMT)<\/strong>, citing national security risks and supply chain dependencies.<\/li>\n<li><strong>U.S. energy production is hitting record levels<\/strong>, with <a href=\"https:\/\/stockmarketwatch.com\/energy\/crude-oil\" data-internallinksmanager029f6b8e52c=\"12\" title=\"Crude oil\">crude oil<\/a> projected to reach <strong>13.83 million barrels per day (bpd)<\/strong> in August and natural gas production climbing to <strong>122.6 billion cubic feet per day (Bcf\/d)<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<li><strong>JPMorgan Chase (<a href=\"\/stock\/JPM\">JPM<\/a>) terminated its banking relationship<\/strong> with the prediction platform <strong>Polymarket<\/strong> due to mounting regulatory concerns surrounding the industry.<\/li>\n<li><strong>Europe is facing a historic heatwave<\/strong>, resulting in drying river basins that have forced the suspension of nuclear energy operations and led to an estimated <strong>25,000 heat-related deaths<\/strong>.<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<h2>Commodities and Energy Markets<\/h2>\n<p><strong>Copper prices spiked to record levels<\/strong> this week, with COMEX and LME benchmarks surging amid an escalating supply scare. The rally is primarily driven by an export ban on copper concentrates from the <strong>Democratic Republic of Congo<\/strong>, the world\u2019s second-largest supplier, alongside structural demand from global electrification projects. Analysts note that copper is up more than <strong>50% year-on-year<\/strong>, reflecting a tightening global market that favors producers capable of maintaining high margins.<\/p>\n<p><strong>U.S. energy output continues to expand<\/strong>, according to the latest Short-Term Energy Outlook from the <strong>EIA<\/strong>. Crude production is expected to average <strong>13.83M bpd<\/strong> in August before a slight seasonal cooling to <strong>13.77M bpd<\/strong> in September. Simultaneously, natural gas production is on track for a record year, projected to average <strong>122.5 Bcf\/d<\/strong> for the full year 2026, providing a significant inventory cushion ahead of the winter heating season.<\/p>\n<h2>Corporate and Regulatory Developments<\/h2>\n<p><strong>Apple (<a href=\"\/stock\/AAPL\">AAPL<\/a>) is under pressure from Washington<\/strong> to abandon plans to source DRAM chips from China\u2019s <strong>CXMT<\/strong>. While Apple seeks to diversify its supply chain and mitigate a global memory shortage that has tripled RAM prices, lawmakers argue the move would deepen U.S. technological dependence on a firm linked to the Chinese military. Apple has already implemented price increases of up to <strong>$300<\/strong> on certain MacBook models, citing &quot;unsustainable&quot; component costs driven by the AI data center boom.<\/p>\n<p><strong>JPMorgan Chase (<a href=\"\/stock\/JPM\">JPM<\/a>) has &quot;debanked&quot; Polymarket<\/strong>, ending its relationship with the leading crypto-based prediction platform. The move, which reportedly occurred in late 2025 but was recently detailed, underscores the increasing regulatory scrutiny on prediction markets. Despite the banking severance, the platform remains a dominant force in the sector, which has seen over <strong>$250 billion<\/strong> in notional trading volume so far in 2026.<\/p>\n<h2>International Affairs and Geopolitics<\/h2>\n<p><strong>Brazil\u2019s presidential race has tightened significantly<\/strong>, with a new <strong>Quaest poll<\/strong> showing incumbent <strong>Lula da Silva<\/strong> leading <strong>Flavio Bolsonaro<\/strong> 43% to 40% in a simulated runoff. The three-point gap sits at the edge of statistical significance, marking a sharp narrowing from previous surveys. Flavio Bolsonaro, the eldest son of the former president, has centered his platform on judicial reform and a pro-U.S. foreign policy as the official campaign period begins.<\/p>\n<p><strong>In the Middle East, regional tensions remain elevated<\/strong> following fresh Israeli airstrikes on the Lebanese town of <strong>Al-Mansouri<\/strong>. Simultaneously, a <strong>Houthi missile attack<\/strong> on Yemen\u2019s <strong>Al-Makha port<\/strong> resulted in eight deaths, including six port workers. These developments have reignited fears of a broader regional conflict, disrupting maritime trade and impacting global energy supply chains already strained by the closure of the <strong>Strait of Hormuz<\/strong>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Key Takeaways Copper prices reached an unprecedented weekly closing high as a supply crunch in the Democratic Republic of Congo 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