Copper edged higher as US bond yields eased ahead of the Federal Reserve’s decision later Wednesday on whether to raise interest rates. Futures rose on the London Metal Exchange alongside other major contracts, boosted by a decline in Treasury yields and a reversal of the dollar’s earlier advance. Prices are still down sharply from a record reached last week that was driven by bets on a US tariff-driven supply squeeze.

Traders have spent the year piling copper into US warehouses hoping to benefit from tariffs that would spike domestic prices, but so far the White House has held off on new measures. Meanwhile, stockpiles in LME-accredited storage facilities outside the country continued to rise this week, diminishing the threat of a supply pinch. Three-month futures are trading at a premium of $62.53 a ton to copper for immediate delivery, a market structure known as contango that signals ample supply.

In previous weeks the reverse formation — backwardation — that indicates a tight market had prevailed. The Fed is widely expected to raise interest rates for the first time since 2023, which is typically a headwind for non-interest bearing assets like commodities. Expectations that high energy prices and booming capital investment will stoke inflationary pressures pushed benchmark 10-year Treasury yields to the highest since 2007 on Tuesday.

Copper was 0.7% higher at $14,176 a ton on the LME at 12:20 p.m. Singapore time. Other metals were mixed, with nickel up 0.5% and lead up 0.6%. Singapore iron ore was up 0.2% to $95.60 a ton.