Inside today’s metals markets: AI demand, regionalisation and investor shifts | The Marex Market Pulse podcast

In this episode of Marex Market Pulse, we break down the major forces reshaping global metals markets, from the surge in AI-driven power demand to tightening regional supply and shifting investor participation.

This recording took place on 23/02/2026, before developments in the Middle East.

Featuring Patrick Seymour, Co-Head of Metals Market Making, and Alastair Munro, Senior Metals Analyst, this discussion explores how electrification, geopolitics and new investment flows are influencing copper, aluminium and tin today, and what consumers should prepare for in the months ahead.

From tariff uncertainty and changing stock flows to the rise of retail investors and central bank buying, this episode offers a concise, grounded view of the structural trends defining metals markets in 2026.

In this episode, we discuss:

• How AI is reshaping metals demand: powering data centers requires accelerating electrification and grid investment. It also increases the demand for copper, aluminium, tin and silver
• Why power scarcity is transforming supply: aluminium smelters are constrained or shutting; AI developers are buying power-connected industrial sites
• The impact of tariffs and geopolitics: North American copper draw, Chinese reserve buying, and regionalisation is replacing globalisation
• Premium volatility: why regional premiums are now moving faster than underlying metals prices
• A shift in investor participation: central banks are buying gold; retail investors are entering commodities markets and ETFs are growing in precious metals
• Under-hedged consumers and rising floors: we are seeing elevated stock levels now, but deferred tightness is expected later in the year
• Where we go from here: signals to watch include stock draws, China's return post-LNY, India's growing demand and options markets for navigating volatility

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Marex has a long heritage in global metals markets, delivering physical and financial metals trading with deep liquidity and expertise. As a Category 1 member of the LME and all major global exchanges, we support producers and consumers across base, ferrous, precious and recycled metals with tailored hedging and risk-management solutions.

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