If you are planning to buy air conditioner, kitchen appliances, cookware or bathware in the new year, then this news can spoil the mathematics of your budget. The reason is that despite getting relief in GST, the prices of these products may increase instead of decreasing. However, when taxes have been reduced then why inflation? The answer lies in a metal which has today become the backbone of every household essential item.
Copper price broke records
In the last few months, there has been a huge rise in the prices of copper in the international market. According to Bloomberg data, the price of copper crossed $12,000 a tonne last month, which is the biggest annual rise since 2009. The effect is clearly visible in India also. The price of copper on MCX has reached around Rs 1,300 per kg.
Cost will increase from AC to cooker
Copper and related metals like brass are very important raw materials for the consumer durables industry. Copper piping used in ACs, motors, compressors and base materials used in cookware are directly increasing the cost. According to Ravi Saxena, CEO of cookware brand Wonderchef, “The prices of copper and aluminum are at record high, hence it has become a compulsion to increase the prices by 5 to 7 percent. Especially in important parts like motor, there is no cheap alternative to copper.”
Bathware will also be affected
Not only kitchen and AC, bathware sector is also in the grip of inflation. Brass prices have increased by 15 to 18 percent this financial year. Shrivatsa Somani of Somani Bathware says that companies have already increased the prices by about 12 percent and may have to pass the cost on to the customers in future too.
Global factors are creating pressure
According to experts, weak dollar, softening of interest rates, expectation of China’s economic recovery, interruption in supply and increasing investment in AI sector, all these reasons are driving up the prices of industrial metals including copper. Goldman Sachs estimates that copper will remain expensive even in the first half of 2026.
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