Copper Price in 2011

In 2011, the price of copper averaged $4.00 per pound, up 17.0% from the year before. This page covers the 2011 average, high, low, and year-end close, the events that moved the market, and what that copper would be worth in today's dollars.

2011 Average

$4.00

LME/COMEX annual average, USD/lb

Change vs 2010

+17.0%

from $3.42 in 2010

What happened to the copper price in 2011

Copper averaged $4.00 per pound in 2011, climbing 17.0% from the $3.42 average of 2010. The notable development of 2011: Copper near all-time high at $4.65/lb.

The 2010s opened at record highs near $4.65 a pound in 2011, then ground lower for years as Chinese growth slowed, commodities sold off, and US-China trade tensions weighed on sentiment, before a late-decade stabilization.

Adjusted for inflation, copper's 2011 average of $4.00 equals about $5.73 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 2011?

Copper averaged $4.00 per pound in 2011, based on LME and COMEX annual average data. That average was up 17.0% from $3.42 in 2010.

What is a 2011 copper price worth in today's dollars?

Adjusted with the US Consumer Price Index, copper's 2011 average of $4.00 works out to roughly $5.73 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 2011?

The defining story of 2011: Copper near all-time high at $4.65/lb. Against that backdrop, the annual average climbed 17.0%, from $3.42 in 2010 to $4.00.

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.