🌍 Global Metals Market Overview — Week of Feb 16–21, 2026 📊
🌀 Liquidity-Driven Volatility
This week’s price action was amplified by thin liquidity due to the U.S. Presidents’ Day 🇺🇸 and Lunar New Year 🧧 in China. Early-week selloffs looked exaggerated 📉 before stabilizing midweek as liquidity returned 📈.
🪙 Precious Metals: Shakeout → Strong Rebound
✨ Gold ($XAU ) traded within the $4,860–$5,070/oz range, holding structure despite volatility.
⚡ Silver ($XAG ) outperformed, surging nearly 6% on Feb 18 🚀 — signaling strong dip-buying interest 💪 even in thin conditions.
🔄 Overall tone: positioning-driven shakeout, not a structural breakdown.
📦 Base Metals: Copper Under Inventory Pressure
🔻 Copper slipped below $12,600/ton as rising inventories softened short-term deficit expectations.
🔄 Prices later stabilized near $12,800/ton as selling momentum eased.
📊 Focus remains on exchange inventory flows and post-holiday Chinese demand recovery.
🧱 Ferrous Segment: Wait-and-See Mode
⛓ Iron ore declined toward $95–$98/ton amid elevated port inventories and cautious restocking.
🏗 Rebar remained relatively stable — reflecting a “wait-for-demand” phase rather than a structural shift.
🧲 Nickel: Structural Supply Catalyst
🇮🇩 Indonesia tightened annual RKAB quotas, reducing output at major sites.
📉 Supply discipline expectations for H1 2026 supported prices despite mixed EV demand signals 🚗⚡.
📈 Structural narrative remains constructive.
🏛️ LME Regulatory Developments
The London Metal Exchange introduced updates including:
📦 Warehouse adjustments
💰 Fee changes
📜 Lending rule updates
🚫 Tighter restrictions on Russian aluminum in EU warehouses
⚖️ These changes add operational and compliance costs — increasing “rule-based risk” beyond pure price action.
📌 Outlook
This week was driven more by liquidity and inventory dynamics than major fundamental shifts.
👀 Market focus now turns to:
🇨🇳 China’s post-holiday demand recovery
📦 LME / SHFE inventory trends
💵 USD direction & bond yields as new U.S. data unfolds
#MetalsMarket #CommoditiesInsights #Gold #Silver 📈