Copper just broke into uncharted territory, touching nearly $12,000 per ton as the year wraps up. It's been quite a ride—trade tensions have rattled markets all year, but underneath that chaos sits something interesting: physical supply is genuinely tight.

What's driving it? On one side, you've got disruptions from trade frictions making logistics messier. On the other, the structural case for demand remains solid. Industrial demand isn't going away—whether it's infrastructure buildouts, energy transition infrastructure, or manufacturing rebounds, copper's long-term story still holds water.

The real takeaway here is the mismatch between constrained near-term supply and structural bullishness on future demand. That's the recipe for sustained strength in commodity prices. For anyone tracking macro trends or thinking about asset allocation beyond crypto, this copper move is worth paying attention to.