(Reuters) – Mercuria estimates that about 500,000 tons of copper are heading to the U.S., against normal monthly imports of around 70,000 tons, triggered by the potential imposition of tariffs, Bloomberg said in a report on Monday.

This massive amount of copper being transported to the U.S. could push copper prices to record highs and potentially leave top consumer China and the rest of the world critically short of copper supplies, the report added, citing Kostas Bintas, the former co-head of metals at commodity trading giant Trafigura Group.

U.S. President Donald Trump last month ordered a new probe into possible new tariffs on copper imports to rebuild U.S. production of a metal critical to electric vehicles, military hardware, semiconductors and a wide range of consumer goods.

Earlier this month, Goldman Sachs said U.S. net copper imports could rise by 50% to 100% in the coming months due to higher U.S. prices before the Trump administration’s planned tariffs.

(Reporting by Anmol Choubey in Bengaluru, Editing by Louise Heavens)