Copper prices rallied to a record high of over $13,000 per ton last month, but retreated to about $12,700 this week as expectations of long-term demand strength collided with massive stockpiling at the key exchange hubs in the U.S. and China. Despite an unchanged outlook of soaring copper demand in the long term due to electrification and surging power consumption, near-term prospects in the copper market appear more fragile than the gold rally. “While we expect long-term gold prices to rise further, we see more differentiated returns across…