This paper examines whether copper imports anticipate economic developments in Germany. A comparison with business expectations shows that firms tend to increase copper orders when anticipating rising demand. Copper prices and GDP also correlate positively with a delay of 1–3 quarters, reaching 0.296 after two quarters. Yet, large business climate shocks — e.g., in early 2022 — do not always translate proportionally into import changes due to other factors like inventories or supply disruptions.