Copper Price in 2006

In 2006, the price of copper averaged $3.05 per pound, up 82.6% from the year before. This page covers the 2006 average, high, low, and year-end close, the events that moved the market, and what that copper would be worth in today's dollars.

2006 Average

$3.05

LME/COMEX annual average, USD/lb

Change vs 2005

+82.6%

from $1.67 in 2005

What happened to the copper price in 2006

Copper averaged $3.05 per pound in 2006, surging 82.6% from the $1.67 average of 2005. Annual moves of that size are rare and put 2006 among the most explosive years in the metal's modern history. The defining story of 2006: Record prices; China infrastructure boom.

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 2006 average of $3.05 equals about $4.88 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 2006?

Copper averaged $3.05 per pound in 2006, based on LME and COMEX annual average data. That average was up 82.6% from $1.67 in 2005.

What is a 2006 copper price worth in today's dollars?

Adjusted with the US Consumer Price Index, copper's 2006 average of $3.05 works out to roughly $4.88 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 2006?

The defining story of 2006: Record prices; China infrastructure boom. Against that backdrop, the annual average climbed 82.6%, from $1.67 in 2005 to $3.05.

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.