Copper surged above $8,000 a tonne for the first time today, up sixfold from lows in 2001, as demand from emerging economies and investors hungry for profits heated up the market.
Three-month copper futures on the London Metal Exchange (LME) touched a fresh peak of $8,060 in electronic trading, up $245 from yesterday's close.
"The trend is firmly higher. The next stage will be to establish the price above $8,000 and I see no reason why it should not be able to do that," Sempra Metals economist John Kemp said.
Traders said the market would aim for round numbers at $9,000 and $10,000, but that predicting a top to the market had become a fool's errand.
Shen Haihua, vice-president of Maike Futures in Shanghai, said: "It's meaningless to set a specific target now. It's unbelievable that the market can go straight up. I don't know how long this trend will last."
Investment funds, which have fuelled the meteoric rise in commodities, still expected prices to climb.
Last Friday copper surged 8 percent, its single largest daily advance. Copper, used in wiring, tubing and coins, has gained around 85 per cent this year.