Freeport Weighs US Copper Expansion, Warns of Tariff Costs (1)

Copper producer Freeport-McMoRan Inc. said it’s considering expansions at several US operations but warned that President Donald Trump’s tariffs may raise its costs.

An expanding trade war has the potential to increase the cost of goods Freeport purchases by about 5%, the company said Thursday. The largest driver of that price hike is the 145% tariffs the White House placed on China earlier this year, according to Chief Executive Officer Kathleen Quirk.

“As we’ve talked with our vendors, the dollar amount of Chinese purchase components in their supply chain is not significant, but the magnitude of 145% is ...