Freeport-McMoRan Slumps, FTSE miners rally, Oil Eases

Freeport-McMoRan dropped 17% late Wednesday after declaring force majeure at its Grasberg mine, while UK-listed miners such as Antofagasta and Anglo American surged on firmer copper prices. The FTSE 100 closed 0.3% higher, supported by gains in defence stocks including BAE Systems and Babcock, though JD Sports slipped after weaker profits. Brent crude settled at $69.12 early Thursday, pulling back slightly after rallying 2.5% the prior session on a sharp fall in US inventories.

Equities

Britain’s FTSE 100 closed 0.3% higher on Wednesday, reversing earlier weakness as gains in miners and defence stocks outweighed losses elsewhere. Industrial metal miners led the advance, rising after copper prices on the London Metal Exchange touched a 15-month high. Antofagasta jumped 9.3%, while Anglo American climbed 4.7% following news that Angola’s state-owned Endiama had bid for a minority stake in its diamond business, De Beers. Glencore added nearly 3%.

Defence stocks also advanced after US President Donald Trump said he believed Ukraine could recover all territory occupied by Russia. Babcock International closed up 4.3%, and BAE Systems gained 2.2%. Among retailers, JD Sports Fashion slipped 0.8% after reporting a 13.5% fall in first-half profit. In the FTSE 250, Pinewood Technologies dropped 14.9% after projecting 2025 EBITDA below analysts’ forecasts, while Baltic Classifieds Group fell 5.1% on results that undershot expectations. Goodwin surged 19.7% after its Goodwin Steel Castings unit announced a collaboration with Northrop Grumman International Trading.

On Wall Street, the three main US indices ended lower for a second consecutive session, with investors taking profits after recent record highs. The Dow Jones Industrial Average fell 0.37%, the S&P 500 slipped 0.28%, and the Nasdaq Composite declined 0.33%.

Materials stocks weighed on the S&P 500, with Freeport-McMoRan tumbling 17% after it declared force majeure at its Grasberg mine in Indonesia and warned of weaker copper and gold sales in the third quarter. Oracle dropped 1.7% after reports it is preparing to raise $15 billion in bond sales. Micron Technology closed 2.8% lower after posting quarterly results.

Lithium Americas nearly doubled to $6.01 afterhours on Tuesday and into Wednesday’s close after reports that the Trump administration is considering acquiring up to a 10% stake in the company. Talks are also ongoing over a potential government loan of more than $2.26 billion for its Thacker Pass lithium project. General Motors rose 2.3% after UBS upgraded the stock to “buy” from “neutral”. Meanwhile, the S&P 500 energy sector gained 1.2%, tracking crude oil prices higher after US inventories fell more than expected, sending oil to a seven-week peak.

Forex & Commodities

The US dollar was steady with the dollar index at 97.74, close to the strongest level since 11 September. The euro edged higher in Asian trading to $1.175 after falling on Wednesday, while sterling stood at $1.346, also slightly firmer after a decline the previous day. The yen strengthened to 148.6 per dollar, moving away from a three-week low touched on Wednesday, as minutes from the Bank of Japan’s July meeting showed some policymakers calling for rate hikes. The Swiss franc was unchanged at 0.7948 per dollar ahead of a Swiss National Bank policy announcement later in the day. The New Zealand dollar traded at $0.5825, up from its one-month low after the government confirmed Anna Breman as the next central bank governor.

Gold was little changed, with spot prices at $3,739 per ounce in early trade on Thursday, just below Tuesday’s record high of $3,791. Analysts see near-term support levels at $3,700 and $3,600, with resistance around $3,790 and then $3,870 to $3,875 if that level is broken. Silver was steady at $43.95 per ounce, platinum rose slightly to $1,475 and palladium slipped to $1,204.

Oil prices eased after sharp gains the day before. Brent crude traded at $69.12 a barrel early in the session, while West Texas Intermediate stood at $64.77. Both benchmarks had closed 2.5% higher on Wednesday, reaching their strongest levels since 1 August after US crude inventories fell unexpectedly and concerns grew about supply risks linked to Russia’s energy sector. Analysts said profit-taking and the possible resumption of Kurdish exports were weighing on prices heading into the winter demand season.