Copper Price in 2003

In 2003, the price of copper averaged $0.81 per pound, up 14.1% from the year before. This page covers the 2003 average, high, low, and year-end close, the events that moved the market, and what that copper would be worth in today's dollars.

2003 Average

$0.81

LME/COMEX annual average, USD/lb

Change vs 2002

+14.1%

from $0.71 in 2002

What happened to the copper price in 2003

Copper averaged $0.81 per pound in 2003, up 14.1% from $0.71 the year before. The notable development of 2003: China demand accelerates.

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 2003 average of $0.81 equals about $1.42 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 2003?

Copper averaged $0.81 per pound in 2003, based on LME and COMEX annual average data. That average was up 14.1% from $0.71 in 2002.

What is a 2003 copper price worth in today's dollars?

Adjusted with the US Consumer Price Index, copper's 2003 average of $0.81 works out to roughly $1.42 in today's dollars, using 2025 as the CPI base year. The conversion uses BLS CPI-U annual averages, so treat it as a close approximation rather than an exact figure.

What moved the copper price in 2003?

The defining story of 2003: China demand accelerates. Against that backdrop, the annual average climbed 14.1%, from $0.71 in 2002 to $0.81.

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.