I’ve noticed too, but not been giving it much thought. Unstable currency markets for one. Like every THING, if dopey/dollar makes it too cheap for too long, consumption rises and production falls, to a point. Shortage.
The whole pricing system is totally screwed up.
http://www.mrci.com/pdf/hg.pdf
http://www.kitcometals.com/charts/copper_historical_large.html#6months