Latest news with #MaximoPacheco
Bloomberg
11-07-2025
- Business
- Bloomberg
Codelco Copper Recovery on Track With Output Up 9% in First Half
Codelco posted a 9% production increase in the first half compared with a year earlier, signaling that the world's biggest copper supplier is on track in its recovery efforts. Chairman Maximo Pacheco announced the result at a ceremony marking the anniversary of the nationalization of the El Teniente mine in central Chile. He didn't give details, and it was unclear if the number included Codelco's share of output from mines it doesn't operate.
Reuters
09-07-2025
- Business
- Reuters
World's top copper producer Chile in wait-and-see mode after Trump tariff bombshell
SANTIAGO, July 8 (Reuters) - Chile, the world's No. 1 copper producer, is in wait-and-see mode after U.S. President Donald Trump announced a surprise 50% tariff on imports of the red metal, with the Andean nation blindsided while its top miner held out hope of exemptions. In a call with Reuters shortly after Trump's remarks, the chairman of Chilean state miner Codelco Maximo Pacheco said the firm wanted to know which copper products would be included and if the tariff would hit all countries. "What we need to do is understand what this is about. What products are affected? Because he referred to copper in general terms. But copper includes a variety of products," Pacheco said on Tuesday in his first comments since the announcement. "Then, we have to see whether this will apply to all countries or only some. We've always known that exceptions are made, and therefore, I think it's premature to comment." U.S. Comex copper futures jumped more than 12% to a record high after Trump announced the planned tariffs. Chile is the single biggest copper supplier to the U.S., a market that makes up less than 7% of its refined copper exports. Chile sends much of its copper to China, which dominates global copper refining. Still, SONAMI President Jorge Riesco said tariffs could cause market uncertainty and price volatility that could hit Chile and other supplier countries. He said the high prices driven by U.S. companies stockpiling copper ahead of possible tariffs were likely to be temporary, and warned that the U.S. would struggle to expand its own supply. "The U.S. lacks the capacity for self-sufficiency and relies heavily on copper smelting and refining in China," Riesco said in a statement. Chile's foreign ministry said the Andean nation had not received any formal official communication regarding the implementation of U.S. copper tariffs. "We continue to be in contact and dialogue on this and other matters with the competent authorities and technical teams," the ministry said in a statement. Chile, along with Canada and Peru, had previously pushed back against a probe by the Trump administration into imports of the metal and said they should not face tariffs. Codelco's Pacheco said the U.S. would need growing amounts of copper, which goes into electric vehicles, military hardware, the power grid and many consumer goods. "The United States is a country that needs a lot of copper, and it will continue to need even more copper," he said, adding it was getting harder to ramp up production. Codelco, the world's biggest copper producer, has seen output hit a 25-year low in recent years. Pacheco estimated global demand would increase some 3% this year, which was creating a supply gap on top of flat output. "The global copper supply is increasingly hard to raise. In fact, I believe that this year, it will be hard to produce more copper than last year," he said. "We also have to consider the reality of what's happening in the market."
Yahoo
08-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Top Copper Nation Sweats on Details of Trump's 50% Tariff
(Bloomberg) -- Chile, by far the biggest shipper of copper into the US, is waiting for details to emerge following President's Donald Trump's bombshell comments on tariffs. Are Tourists Ruining Europe? How Locals Are Pushing Back Can Americans Just Stop Building New Highways? Denver City Hall Takes a Page From NASA Philadelphia Trash Piles Up as Garbage Workers' Strike Drags On Trump sent shock-waves through the global copper industry on Tuesday by telling reporters that he would be slapping a 50% levy on copper imports — about double what the market was pricing in. Chile — and particularly state-owned Codelco — would be the most affected producer given the country accounts for about 500,000 metric tons of the total of 700,000 tons of refined metal the US imports a year. Of that, Codelco alone ships about 350,000 tons. Asked about Trump's remarks, Chile's Foreign Ministry pointed out that there's still no executive order regarding a Commerce Department investigation into copper tariffs, and that Chile is yet to receive notification of any decision. Similarly, Codelco Chairman Maximo Pacheco said it's too soon to draw conclusions. Given that Chile accounts for such a large chunk of US copper imports and considering how difficult it would be to replace Chilean metal, there may be an element of negotiating tactics in pledging the 50% tariff, Ben Hoff, head of commodity research at Societe Generale. 'The big elephant in the room is Chile,' Hoff said by telephone. Two major unknowns are whether there'll be country exemptions and whether the tariff will apply to both semi-fabricated copper products as well as refined metal, Pacheco said. The US needs that copper and Chile will continue to be ready to supply it, he said. Chilean officials participated in public consultations in the framework of the Commerce Department investigation. 'We remain in contact and engaged in discussions on this and other matters with the relevant authorities and technical teams,' Chile's Foreign Ministry said in a written response. (Adds comment from SocGen analysts in fifth and sixth paragraphs) Will Trade War Make South India the Next Manufacturing Hub? 'Telecom Is the New Tequila': Behind the Celebrity Wireless Boom SNAP Cuts in Big Tax Bill Will Hit a Lot of Trump Voters Too Pistachios Are Everywhere Right Now, Not Just in Dubai Chocolate For Brazil's Criminals, Coffee Beans Are the Target ©2025 Bloomberg L.P.
Yahoo
08-07-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
World's top copper producer Chile in wait-and-see mode after Trump tariff bombshell
By Daina Beth Solomon and Fabian Cambero SANTIAGO (Reuters) -Chile, the world's No. 1 copper producer, is in wait-and-see mode after U.S. President Donald Trump announced a surprise 50% tariff on imports of the red metal, with the Andean nation blindsided while its top miner held out hope of exemptions. In a phone call with Reuters shortly after Trump's remarks, the chairman of Chilean state miner Codelco Maximo Pacheco said the firm wanted to know which copper products would be included and if the tariff would hit all countries. "I believe what we need to do is understand what this is about. What products are affected? Because he referred to copper in general terms. But copper includes a variety of products," Pacheco said on Tuesday in his first comments since the announcement. "Then, we have to see whether this will apply to all countries or only some. We've always known that exceptions are made, and therefore, I think it's premature to comment." U.S. Comex copper futures jumped more than 12% to a record high after Trump announced the planned tariffs. Chile's foreign ministry said in a statement that the Andean nation - the single biggest copper supplier to the U.S. - had not received any formal official communication regarding the implementation of U.S. copper tariffs. "It is important to remember that we participated in the public consultations within the framework of the investigation carried out by the current U.S. administration," the ministry said in a statement to Reuters. "We continue to be in contact and dialogue on this and other matters with the competent authorities and technical teams." Chile, along with Canada and Peru, had previously pushed back against a probe by the Trump administration into imports of the metal and said they should not face tariffs. Pacheco said the U.S. would need growing amounts of copper, which goes into electric vehicles, military hardware, the power grid and many consumer goods. "The United States is a country that needs a lot of copper, and it will continue to need even more copper," he said, adding it was getting harder to ramp up production. Codelco has seen output hit a 25-year low in recent years. Pacheco estimated global demand would increase some 3% this year, which was creating a supply gap on top of flat output. "The global copper supply is increasingly hard to raise. In fact, I believe that this year, it will be hard to produce more copper than last year," he said. "We also have to consider the reality of what's happening in the market." Chile sends most of its copper exports to China, which consumes half of the world's copper each year. Sign in to access your portfolio
Yahoo
19-05-2025
- Business
- Yahoo
Rio Tinto invests in major Chilean lithium project
Chile's state-owned copper giant Codelco announced a partnership on Monday with British-Australian miner Rio Tinto to extract lithium from a salt flat that contains the world's second-biggest deposits of the prized metal. Mining companies are scrambling to get their hands on lithium, a key ingredient in electric car and smartphone batteries. Argentina, Bolivia and Chile together form the so-called Lithium Triangle, home to 60 percent of the world's deposits of the metal, according to the US Geological Survey (USGS). The Maricunga salt flat in northern Chile is second only to the Atacama salt flat on Chile's border with Bolivia in terms of its concentration of lithium in brine. Codelco, the world's biggest copper producer, said that Rio Tinto would invest $900 million to acquire a 49.99 percent stake in the joint venture, called Salar Maricunga SpA. Codelco itself would retain a controlling stake of 50.01 percent, it added. Chile is the world's second-biggest producer after Australia of the metal dubbed "white gold." Currently, all Chile's lithium comes from the Atacama salt flat. In 2023, Chilean President Gabriel Boric launched a plan to boost output by developing public-private partnerships to harness other deposits. Codelco chairman Maximo Pacheco said the new venture, which is expected to be finalized by the end of March 2026, was part of the company's diversification strategy. With a presence in 35 countries, British-Australian multinational Rio Tinto is the world's second-biggest mining conglomerate after Australia's BHP. It already has stakes in lithium projects in Argentina and Serbia. ps/pa/vel/cb/sla Error in retrieving data Sign in to access your portfolio Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data Error in retrieving data
