Copper Price in 2002
In 2002, the price of copper averaged $0.71 per pound, down 1.4% from the year before. This page covers the 2002 average, high, low, and year-end close, the events that moved the market, and what that copper would be worth in today's dollars.
2002 Average
$0.71
LME/COMEX annual average, USD/lb
Change vs 2001
-1.4%
from $0.72 in 2001
2002 High
$0.79
from daily trading data
2002 Low
$0.66
from daily trading data
Year-End Close
$0.70
last trading day of 2002
What happened to the copper price in 2002
Copper averaged $0.71 per pound in 2002, essentially unchanged from $0.72 in 2001. Daily trading data shows copper moved between a low of $0.66 and a high of $0.79 during the year, ending 2002 at $0.70.
The 2000s were defined by the China supercycle. Explosive Chinese urbanization and infrastructure spending quadrupled copper between 2003 and 2006, driving it above $3 a pound, before the 2008 financial crisis produced a devastating crash and a rapid stimulus-fueled recovery.
Adjusted for inflation, copper's 2002 average of $0.71 equals about $1.27 in today's dollars. The conversion uses US Bureau of Labor Statistics CPI-U annual averages, so treat it as a close approximation rather than an exact figure.
Frequently Asked Questions
What was the price of copper in 2002?
What is a 2002 copper price worth in today's dollars?
Annual averages are LME and COMEX copper prices per pound in US dollars. Where shown, the yearly high, low, and close come from MetalCharts daily historical data and may differ slightly from figures published elsewhere. Inflation adjustments use BLS CPI-U annual averages.