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Business Recorder
2 days ago
- Business
- Business Recorder
Copper inches up; focus on trade developments
Copper prices edged higher on Wednesday, helped by stronger-than-expected U.S. jobs data, even as investors stayed cautious amid ongoing trade negotiations. Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was up 0.1% to $9,643.5 per metric ton by 0945 GMT. Providing support, the U.S. dollar slipped, making metals more affordable for holders of other currencies. 'Yesterday's JOLTS, which was better than expected, leaves markets surprised by the resilience of the U.S. economy,' said Alastair Munro at broker Marex. Job openings, a measure of labor demand, rose 191,000 to 7.391 million by the last day of April, the Labor Department's Bureau of Labor Statistics said in its Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey, or JOLTS report, on Tuesday. Meanwhile, Trump signed an executive proclamation that puts into effect from Wednesday his surprise announcement last week that he was taking the tariffs on steel and aluminum imports that had been in place since March to 50% from 25%. Wednesday is also when the White House would like trading partners to submit their proposals for deals that might help them avoid Trump's hefty 'Liberation Day' tariffs from taking effect in five weeks. Copper falls as China's factory activity misses expectations LME copper also benefited from continued outflows from LME-registered warehouses. LME's daily data showed inventory fell to 141,350 tons, a near one-year low, after 2,500 were delivered out. The latest metal tariffs have renewed focus on the ongoing U.S. investigation into potential new copper import duties, aimed at boosting domestic production. This has pushed COMEX copper prices above LME levels, prompting traders to reroute copper supplies to the U.S. to take advantage of the price gap. LME tin gained 3% to $32,300, aluminium firmed 0.8% to $2,483.5 a ton, zinc rose 0.4% to $2,717.5, nickel was up 0.2% to $15,465, and lead inched down 0.1% to $1,984.5.
Business Recorder
23-05-2025
- Business
- Business Recorder
Copper touches 3-week low as economic uncertainty lingers
LONDON: Copper prices hit a three-week low on Thursday and other base metals also eased as uncertainty persists over economic conditions and demand growth. Benchmark copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) was down 0.6% at $9,477 a metric ton by 1400 GMT. Earlier in the session, prices touched their lowest since May 1 at $9,223.20. 'A real state of paralysis has swept through metals markets,' said Alastair Munro at broker Marex, pointing to the expiry of LME benchmark contracts this week. Prices have been pressured by a sharp rise in Chinese copper inventories last week, ending a three-week run of large withdrawals. Analysts and traders said that the rise was due to tepid copper demand in China and steady output from a growing smelting sector. Also weighing on the market was the prospect of more supply after Freeport Indonesia's Manyar smelter in East Java resumed operations ahead of schedule after a fire last year. Further dampening the market was a firmer US dollar after data showed US business activity picked up in May, making dollar-priced metals more expensive for buyers with other currencies. LME lead was down 1% at $1,955 a ton after touching its lowest since May 9 at $1,947.50. On-warrant LME lead inventories have surged by 91% over the past two days to 234,000 tons, their highest since December 2024.
Business Recorder
22-05-2025
- Business
- Business Recorder
Copper touches three-week low as economic uncertainty lingers
Copper prices hit a three-week low on Thursday and other base metals also eased as uncertainty persists over economic conditions and demand growth. Benchmark copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) was down 0.7% at $9,462 a metric ton by 0938 GMT after touching it lowest since May 1 at $9,223.20. 'A real state of paralysis has swept through metals markets,' said Alastair Munro at broker Marex, pointing to the expiry of LME benchmark contracts last week. Prices have been pressured by a sharp rise in Chinese copper inventories last week, ending a three-week run of large withdrawals. Analysts and traders said that the rise was due to tepid copper demand in China and steady output from a growing smelting sector. Also weighing on the market was the prospect of more supply after Freeport Indonesia's Manyar smelter in East Java resumed operations ahead of schedule after a fire last year. It is expected to produce copper cathode by the fourth week of June. Copper drifts higher on worries about US debt Investor sentiment, meanwhile, remained subdued in the face of a deteriorating U.S. fiscal outlook, with last week's Moody's downgrade fueling a growing 'Sell America' narrative and leaving markets adrift. Helping to curb losses was a softer U.S. dollar, making dollar-priced metals cheaper for buyers with other currencies. LME lead fell 1.1% to $1,952 a ton after touching its lowest since May 9 at $1,947.50. On-warrant LME lead inventories have surged by 91% over the past two days to 234,000 tons, their highest since December 2024. Among other metals, aluminium dipped 0.2% at $2,467 a ton, zinc eased by 0.2% to $2,688 and nickel was down 0.9% at $15,450 while tin lost 1.4% to $32,365.
Business Recorder
29-04-2025
- Business
- Business Recorder
China demand drives up copper prices ahead of national holiday
LONDON: Copper prices rose on Tuesday as a result of high demand from top consumer China ahead of its May holiday, concerns about tight nearby regional supply, and a stronger yuan currency. Benchmark three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) was up 0.9% to $9,458.50 per metric ton at 1019 GMT, but failed to break through the resistance coming from its 50-day moving average of $9,489. 'We are seeing a trend of restocking in China in advance of the May Day holiday,' said Arthur Parish, an analyst at SP Angel. The mainland China market is due to close from May 1 for a five-day Labour Day holiday. The Yangshan copper premium, which reflects demand for copper imported into China, was last at $93 per ton, its highest price since December 2023. This premium is up 6% since Friday, when official data showed a 32% weekly drop in copper inventories in warehouses monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange. These inventories are expected to show further decline in the next SHFE data due on Wednesday, said Alastair Munro, senior base metals strategist at broker Marex, who added that this topic would remain crucial in May. Copper steadies, focus on US-China trade tensions 'The restocking requirement was exacerbated after inventories were redirected from Asia into the U.S. amid the tariff-fuelled jump in COMEX premiums,' Parish said. Copper inventories in COMEX-owned warehouses are up 40% so far this month as Washington continues its investigation on possible new U.S. copper import tariffs, keeping the Comex premium over the LME benchmark at unusually high $1,443 per ton. The spread between the LME cash copper and the three-month contract widened the premium to $30 a ton compared to a discount of $16.5 a week ago, indicating tighter nearby supply in the LME system as well. Meanwhile, the surplus in the global copper market is expected to widen this year to 289,000 tons from last year's 138,000 tons and to persist next year, according to the International Copper Study Group. China's yuan strengthened to a one-month high against the dollar on Tuesday, providing further support to the Chinese buying activity. In other London metals, aluminium rose 1.3% to $2,465 a ton, zinc added 1.2% to $2,663, lead gained 0.2% to $1,970, tin climbed 0.5% to $32,155 and nickel fell 0.1% to $15,595.
Zawya
07-03-2025
- Business
- Zawya
Copper eases on weak China data, risk-averse investors
Copper prices slipped on Friday on weak trade data from top metals consumer China, selling by miners and as investors reduced positions amid volatile changes in U.S. tariff policy. Benchmark three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) was down 0.5% at $9,684 a metric ton by 1100 GMT while U.S. Comex copper futures shed 0.6% to $4.78 a lb. LME copper touched its highest in four months on Thursday at $9,739 a ton on a weak dollar and after U.S. President Donald Trump relaxed his tariffs on Canada and Mexico. The upbeat sentiment carried over to Asian trading on the Shanghai Futures Exchange, where copper hit a five-month peak, but it pared gains to end the session up 0.3%. Prices pulled back on fresh worries about the world's second-largest economy after data showed Chinese imports unexpectedly shrank over January-February, while exports lost momentum and China's trade surplus with the United States grew. In addition, China's unwrought copper imports declined by 7.2% year-on-year to 837,000 metric tons in the same period. "The weak Chinese imports are raising a question over the real state of their domestic economy and the trade surplus is only going to raise the likelihood of more tariffs," said Alastair Munro, senior base metals strategist at broker Marex. Investors were also shedding positions ahead of the weekend, wary of unexpected news that could hit prices, he added. "Given all the uncertainty, we live in a much higher frequency trading world. Now you've got a lot of people who don't want to carry risk over the weekend." With LME copper set for a rise of 3.4% this week, copper producers have been selling to lock in the higher prices, Munro said. Helping support the market was a weaker dollar index, which is on course for its worst weekly performance since the week in November when Trump won the U.S. election. A softer dollar makes commodities priced in the U.S. currency less expensive for buyers using other currencies. LME aluminium edged up 0.1% to $2,700 a ton and nickel was little changed at $16,305 while zinc lost 0.4% to $2,918, lead dropped 1.2% to $2,024 and tin eased 0.3% to $32,480. ($1 = 7.2446 yuan ) (Reporting by Eric Onstad; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala)
