US buys record 53,290 tonnes of discounted Congo copper as shipments to China fall

The July shipment was greater than the fewer than 32,000 tonnes the US imported from Congo during the whole of 2024.

Citing US trade data and industry sources, Reuters reported⁠ that Congolese copper accounted for 23.9% of all American copper imports in July. Total US imports exceeded 220,000 tonnes for the first time as traders rushed to deliver metal before the possible introduction of tariffs.

The increase marks an important shift for Congolese copper, which has traditionally been directed towards China and was previously less widely accepted by American industrial users.

Why American companies are buying more Congolese copper

Copper cathodes are sheets of highly refined metal used to manufacture electrical cables, copper rods, tubes and other industrial products.

No Congolese copper brand is currently approved for delivery against contracts traded on COMEX, the principal US metals-futures exchange. Only two African copper brands, both produced in Zambia, appear on the exchange’s approved list.

That restriction does not prevent American manufacturers from purchasing Congolese copper for physical use. It means the metal cannot be delivered to settle a COMEX futures contract.

Congolese copper is instead generally priced against the London Metal Exchange. Reuters cited an industry source who said his metal was typically sold at a discount of between $550 and $800 per tonne to account for freight costs.

The unusually large premium commanded by COMEX-approved copper during the summer made the Congolese alternative more attractive to American copper-rod mills and tube manufacturers.

Industry sources also said the quality of Congolese copper had improved, removing another obstacle to its acceptance in the US.

The identities of the Congolese producers and American buyers responsible for July’s record imports were not disclosed.

China remains Congo’s dominant copper market

The increase in American imports coincided with a decline in the volume of Congolese copper entering China.

China imported 4.3% less copper from Congo during the first seven months of 2026 than it did during the corresponding period a year earlier. In July, Chinese imports from Congo reached 95,778 tonnes, representing 39.4% of China’s total copper imports.

That was Congo’s lowest monthly share of the Chinese market since October 2025, but China still bought substantially more Congolese copper than the United States.

The longer-term figures are also more nuanced. Although China’s import volume declined during the seven-month period, Congo’s share of Chinese imports increased by five percentage points to 44.7%.

The data therefore do not establish that the United States has displaced China as Congo’s principal copper customer. They show that Congo is developing a significant second market at a time when American companies and policymakers are trying to diversify mineral supply chains.

Economics meets Washington’s mineral strategy

The commercial shift supports Washington’s wider effort to secure more African copper, cobalt and other strategic minerals.

Earlier in 2026, Congo’s state-owned miner Gécamines began arranging the export of 100,000 tonnes of copper to the United States through a trading partnership with Mercuria. The metal was to come from Gécamines’ share of production at Tenke Fungurume, a major mine operated by China’s CMOC Group.

Washington has also been supporting railway and infrastructure projects intended to move copper and cobalt from the Congolese mining belt through Angola’s Lobito port.

The July figures suggest that price and improved product quality may now be reinforcing those diplomatic efforts. American manufacturers are not buying the metal solely because of government strategy: they can obtain usable copper at a lower cost than some COMEX-approved alternatives.

However, the surge may not be permanent. Part of the July increase came as traders accelerated shipments ahead of possible US tariffs, while the price advantage could narrow if the gap between COMEX and London copper prices falls.