Copper prices fell on Tuesday under pressure from a stronger dollar, weaker risk appetite, and profit-taking after the metal hit a record high in the previous session.

Three-month benchmark copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) slipped 0.4% to $11,202 per metric ton as of 10:15 GMT, after touching a record $11,334 on Monday.

Copper has risen 27% on the LME since the start of the year, driven mainly by concerns over potential supply shortages.

Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank in Copenhagen, said: “We’re seeing a pause today after the dollar partly recovered and overall risk appetite weakened.”

Equities posted modest gains on Tuesday, while traders remained cautious after the selloff in cryptocurrencies and global bond markets.

The dollar strengthened against the yen following a well-received Japanese government bond auction. A stronger dollar increases the cost of dollar-priced commodities for buyers using other currencies.

Hansen added: “Copper remains in strong spirits, but we need a correction. As long as prices hold above $11,000, higher levels are likely, with next year’s forecasts pointing to a tight market.”

More copper is flowing into the United States, as investors capitalize on price spreads between the U.S. COMEX and the LME by delivering metal into American warehouses.

The market is also assessing the impact of a plan by major Chinese copper smelters to cut output by 10% next year.

Analysts at China’s Jinrui Futures said in a note that the smelters’ production-cut plan reinforces expectations that refined copper supply will shift toward a deficit.

The most-active copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange ended the daytime session up 0.1% at 88,920 yuan ($12,574.60) per ton, after earlier touching a record 89,920 yuan.

Among other metals, aluminium on the LME rose 0.1% to $2,896.50 per ton, lead gained 0.1% to $2,003, zinc fell 0.4% to $3,085, nickel slipped 0.2% to $14,900, and tin declined 0.4% to $39,000.

Bitcoin prices saw a mild rebound on Tuesday following a steep selloff in the previous session that drove the world’s largest cryptocurrency below $84,000, as digital assets faced a renewed wave of risk aversion at the start of December.

The drop caught traders off guard, coming just days after Bitcoin had recovered from levels near $80,000 late last week.

Bitcoin was last up 0.6% at $87,087.6 as of 01:58 New York time (06:58 GMT), after falling more than 7% below $84,000 on Monday.

Bitcoin slides into December amid fresh wave of panic

Monday’s decline extended the downtrend that dominated November — the cryptocurrency’s worst monthly performance in more than four years — alongside sizable outflows from spot Bitcoin ETFs.

Negative sentiment continued to pressure crypto markets amid rising concerns over weak institutional demand. Reports indicated that a rapid increase in “whale” inflows into major exchanges, combined with algorithmic selling, helped accelerate the downturn.

Although Bitcoin steadied slightly on Tuesday, the move did little to ease worries about broader market weakness. A CoinDesk report noted that Bitcoin could test the $60,000 to $65,000 range if declines persist.

The renewed risk-off move was driven by a combination of profit-taking, thin liquidity, and anticipation of several key economic catalysts this month.

Expectations for a Federal Reserve rate cut at next week’s meeting rose to nearly 90%, boosting hopes for monetary easing, though uncertainty surrounding the timing and magnitude of the upcoming easing cycle continues to add volatility to crypto markets.

Investors are also watching developments in Washington, where President Donald Trump is expected to decide on a successor to Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.

Strategy cuts earnings guidance as Bitcoin drops

Shares of Strategy Inc (NASDAQ: MSTR) fell sharply on Monday after the company cut its annual earnings guidance, warning that the deepening Bitcoin decline and continued volatility in crypto markets had significantly weakened its profit outlook.

Other crypto-linked stocks also slipped on Monday: Coinbase (NASDAQ: COIN) dropped roughly 5%, while Robinhood (NASDAQ: HOOD) fell more than 4%.

Crypto prices today: Altcoins struggle

Most altcoins traded in tight ranges on Monday amid a cautious tone.

Ethereum, the second-largest cryptocurrency, slipped 0.3% to $2,814.92.

XRP, the third-largest token, declined 1.1% to $2.02.

Oil prices were steady on Tuesday as traders weighed the risks from Ukrainian drone strikes on Russian energy sites and rising tensions between the United States and Venezuela.

Brent crude futures slipped 18 cents, or 0.3%, to $62.99 a barrel by 10:17 GMT. US West Texas Intermediate fell 13 cents, or 0.2%, to $59.19 a barrel.

Both benchmarks had gained more than 1% on Monday, with WTI nearing a two-week high.

Jahnef Shah, an analyst at Rystad Energy, said: “The downward pressure from a global supply surplus is being balanced by accelerated strikes on Russian energy infrastructure over the weekend, along with escalating US–Venezuela tensions.”

He added: “The geopolitical risk premium has risen over the past few sessions, with ships carrying the Russian flag also coming under attack.”

On Monday, the Caspian Pipeline Consortium (CPC) said it had resumed oil shipments from a mooring point at its Black Sea terminal after a major Ukrainian drone strike on 29 November.

Separately, US President Donald Trump said on Saturday that “the airspace over and around Venezuela” should be considered closed, injecting fresh uncertainty into the oil market given Venezuela’s status as a key crude supplier.

Tamas Varga, analyst at PVM Oil Associates, said: “Attention is also on the Ukrainian peace talks, which could eventually lead to Russia increasing its crude and product exports again, although that path is likely to be long.”

On the diplomatic front, Trump’s special envoy, Steve Witkoff, and his son-in-law Jared are set to meet Russian President Vladimir Putin on Tuesday to discuss possible ways to end the war.

Russian presidential envoy Kirill Dmitriev will also meet Witkoff in Moscow on Tuesday, according to sources familiar with the US–Russia discussions.

Kremlin spokesman Dmitry Peskov told Indian reporters on Tuesday that India’s reduced imports of Russian crude may last “only briefly,” with Moscow planning to increase supplies to New Delhi.

Russia is India’s largest oil supplier, and India is the world’s third-largest crude importer and consumer. However, New Delhi is set to cut its Russian crude purchases this month to the lowest level in at least three years after Washington imposed sanctions on two major Russian producers, Rosneft and Lukoil.

The euro held steady on Tuesday ahead of eurozone inflation and unemployment data, while the dollar rose against the yen following a successful Japanese government bond auction that eased investor nerves after a sharp global fixed-income selloff on Monday.

The euro was unchanged at $1.1606 before the inflation report due at 10:00 GMT, with markets expecting the figures to have little impact on the outlook for European Central Bank rate cuts.

Meanwhile, talks aimed at ending the war in Ukraine continued.

Francesco Pesole, FX strategist at ING, said: “Today’s CPI numbers are not expected to significantly alter market expectations for ECB rates… If anything, the impact leans slightly negative for the euro, but we foresee a neutral effect on currencies overall.”

The dollar climbed 0.37% against the yen to ¥156.01 after touching a two-week low on Monday, supported by strong demand in a 10-year Japanese government bond auction—the highest since September—which helped spark a rebound in super-long-dated bonds after their yields had hit record highs earlier in the day.

“The auction results seem to have provided a degree of reassurance to the market,” said Shoki Omori, chief desk strategist at Mizuho in Tokyo.

Stocks, bonds, cryptocurrencies, and the dollar all weakened on Monday after Bank of Japan Governor Kazuo Ueda said the central bank would examine the “pros and cons” of a rate hike at its next meeting. His remarks pushed two-year Japanese yields above 1% for the first time since 2008 and triggered broad ripple effects across global bond markets.

Further pressure came from softer-than-expected US manufacturing data, increasing expectations that the Federal Reserve will cut rates this month. Fed funds futures now price an 87% chance of a 25-basis-point cut at the 10 December meeting, up from 63% a month earlier, according to the CME FedWatch tool.

The US Dollar Index held steady at 99.48 after touching a more-than-two-week low on Monday.

Sterling was also flat at $1.3215, after hitting a one-month high on Monday.

In a separate development, the Bank of England on Tuesday reduced the amount of capital it estimates lenders must hold, aiming to boost credit supply and support the economy—the first such reduction in bank capital requirements since the financial crisis.