London, January 27, 2026, 09:24 GMT — Regular session
Shares of Antofagasta Plc (ANTO.L) slipped roughly 2% in early London trading Tuesday, reversing a steep jump from the previous session. By 0924 GMT, the stock was down 2.1% at 3,696 pence, after closing at 3,775 pence.
Copper prices are slipping once more, putting pressure on London-listed mining stocks that have been riding the recent commodity rally. The London Metal Exchange’s three-month copper contract dropped 1.11% to $13,052 a tonne, retreating after topping $13,300 earlier this week. Adding to the strain, China’s Shanghai Futures Exchange announced plans to hike margin requirements for futures traders starting Jan. 28.
This is significant as Antofagasta has been acting like a bellwether for copper, which is seeing wider price swings. Since miners hold a heavy stake in the FTSE 100, abrupt shifts in copper prices can rapidly ripple through the index and impact risk appetite.
Antofagasta surged 5.33% to £37.75 on Monday, hitting a fresh 52-week peak amid unusually heavy trading volume. The stock’s jump outstripped the mostly flat FTSE 100 session, exposing it to potential profit-taking as metals prices later softened.
Copper’s rally earlier this week got a boost from a softer dollar and new supply updates from Chile. Machinery contractor Finning announced a labour deal reached Saturday, ending the blockade by striking workers at the access road to BHP’s Escondida mine and Antofagasta’s Zaldivar mine. Meanwhile, the strike at Capstone Copper’s Mantoverde mine remains ongoing.
In London, the mining sector fell behind early on while the wider index stayed steady. The FTSE 100 inched up roughly 0.2%, but Anglo American, Rio Tinto, and Antofagasta each dropped close to 1%. Glencore also dipped about 0.8%, per Trading Economics figures shown on TradingView.
Mining shares provided some support to UK stocks on Monday, as investors braced for the Federal Reserve’s upcoming policy announcement and digested recent geopolitical strains. Industrial metal miners rose 1.4%, while precious-metal miners reached record highs, counterbalancing declines in industrial and travel sectors, according to a Reuters report.
That said, the situation works both ways. Should copper slide further or if stricter futures trading regulations prompt leveraged funds to unwind positions, miners could drop sharply—even without any fresh company news.
Investors in Antofagasta are now focused on the company’s upcoming production update, a key figure that could reshape expectations around output volumes, grades, and cash costs. Traders remain alert to whether the recent labor unrest in Chile settles fully or resurfaces in some new way as the year unfolds.
Antofagasta plans to release its Q4 2025 production figures on Jan. 29, with the full-year 2025 results set for Feb. 17.
