Latest news with #LondonMetalExchange
Business Recorder
4 hours ago
- Business
- Business Recorder
Copper edges higher, others slip on uncertainty
LONDON: Copper prices drifted higher on Tuesday, buoyed by hopes for firmer Chinese demand, but investors were cautious about the impact of tariffs on economic growth and inflation. The three-month copper contract on the London Metal Exchange added 0.2% to $9,875 a metric ton in official open-outcry trading, having hit its highest in nearly two weeks in the previous session. 'The Chinese government's working plans to stabilize industrial growth and the launch of the giant Tibet hydropower plant are all positive signals to the metals market,' a Beijing-based futures analyst said. Other LME base metals were weaker amid concerns about negotiations ahead of an August 1 deadline for countries to secure trade deals with the U.S. or face steep tariffs. 'There are a lot of reasons to be cautious for the month ahead. We might see a pullback in terms of the base metals,' said Dan Smith, managing director at Commodity Market Analytics. 'I think the next month or two could be pretty interesting with all this pressure on the Federal Reserve to cut rates, but actually inflationary pressure is potentially building in the U.S.' Zinc prices hit four-month peak The period until September is also a seasonally weak period for demand, Smith added. On the Shanghai Futures Exchange, however, aluminium prices hit their highest since November, with the most active contract rising 0.75% to 20,900 yuan ($2,913.26) a ton. 'Aluminium fundamentals are the most solid among metals in China,' a Shanghai-based metals analyst at a futures company said. LME aluminium slipped 0.3% in official activity to $2,638 a ton, zinc eased 0.4% to $2,828, lead lost 0.5% to $2,005.50, nickel dipped 0.3% to $15,470 and tin fell 0.3% to $33,695.
Business Recorder
15 hours ago
- Business
- Business Recorder
Zinc prices hit four-month peak
LONDON: Zinc prices rose to four-month highs on Monday as worries about tightness on the London Metal Exchange surfaced after data showed more than half of stocks in its approved warehouses had been marked to leave the system. Benchmark zinc on the LME traded 0.7% higher at $2,838 a metric ton in official rings, having earlier touched $2,876 a ton, the highest since March 28. Overall stocks of zinc in LME warehouses stand at 118,225 tons. Cancelled warrants or metal earmarked for delivery at 50% suggest another 59,900 tons waiting to be loaded out. But traders say there are doubts about whether much of that zinc will leave LME warehouses as it is mostly stored in Singapore and much of the metal there is in so-called rent sharing deals. Rent deals are profitable agreements under which LME-registered warehouses share fees or rental income with companies that deliver metal to them. 'It remains unclear if this latest volatile move in stocks is being driven by pure physical demand or as part of market players benefiting from rent deals,' said Natalie Scott-Gray, senior metals analyst at StoneX. 'If we do not see a similar quantity of material come back onto the exchange in the next three to four weeks, we can assume that this latest order is to fulfil, at least in part, physical consumption requirements in Europe.' Also in focus are large holdings of zinc warrants - title documents conferring ownership. Further cancellations would add to tightness which has created a premium for the LME cash contract over the three-month forward. Providing a boost for zinc, used to galvanise steel, was China's announcement that construction had begun on what will be the world's largest hydropower dam, on the eastern rim of the Tibetan Plateau, at an estimated cost of at least $170 billion, traders said. Overall, industrial metals were supported by top consumer China's plans to stabilise growth in the machinery, autos and electrical equipment sectors. Copper rose 0.6% to $9,843, aluminium gained 0.5% to $2,644, lead slipped 0.3% to $2,003, tin was up 0.9% at $33,750 and nickel climbed 1.4% to $15,430 a ton.
Bloomberg
a day ago
- Business
- Bloomberg
Clear Street Cuts Jobs in UK Unit Less Than a Year After Launch
Financial services firm Clear Street is cutting a small number of its London-based staff, less than a year after starting the UK business. The New York-based company announced the launch of Clear Street UK in December following approval from the Financial Conduct Authority, saying it was joining the London Metal Exchange.
Business Recorder
a day ago
- Business
- Business Recorder
Zinc hits 4-month peak as availability on LME declines
LONDON: Zinc prices rose to four-month highs on Monday as worries about tightness on the London Metal Exchange surfaced after data showed more than half of stocks in its approved warehouses had been marked to leave the system. Benchmark zinc on the LME was up 1.2% at $2,851 a metric ton at 1030 GMT, having earlier touched $2,876 a ton, the highest since March 28. Overall stocks of zinc in LME warehouses stand at 118,225 tons. Cancelled warrants or metal earmarked for delivery at 50% suggest another 59,900 tons waiting to be loaded out. But traders say there are doubts about whether much of that zinc will leave LME warehouses as it is mostly stored in Singapore and much of the metal there is in so-called rent sharing deals. Rent deals are profitable agreements under which LME-registered warehouses share fees or rental income with companies that deliver metal to them. 'It remains unclear if this latest volatile move in stocks is being driven by pure physical demand or as part of market players benefiting from rent deals,' said Natalie Scott-Gray, senior metals analyst at StoneX. Copper hits one-week high on Chinese buying, hopes for trade deal 'If we do not see a similar quantity of material come back onto the exchange in the next three to four weeks, we can assume that this latest order is to fulfil, at least in part, physical consumption requirements in Europe.' Also in focus are large holdings of zinc warrants - title documents conferring ownership. Further cancellations would add to tightness which has created a small premium for the LME cash contract over the three-month forward. Providing a boost for zinc, used to galvanise steel, was China's announcement that construction had begun on what will be the world's largest hydropower dam, on the eastern rim of the Tibetan Plateau, at an estimated cost of at least $170 billion, traders said. Overall, industrial metals were supported by top consumer China's plans to stabilise growth in the machinery, autos and electrical equipment sectors. Copper rose 0.7% to $9,850, aluminium gained 0.5% to $2,644, lead slipped 0.1% to $2,008, tin was up 0.8% at $33,725 and nickel climbed 1.1% to $15,385 a ton.
West Australian
a day ago
- Business
- West Australian
China's $256b dam project in Tibet opens iron ore price floodgates
Iron ore and steel climbed to a four-month high, as China's plan for a mega dam in Tibet bolstered the outlook for demand. The steel-making ingredient jumped as much as 2.9 per cent in Singapore to approach $US104 a tonne on Monday, following a run of four weekly gains, while futures for reinforcement bar in Shanghai also surged to the highest level since March. On the London Metal Exchange, copper advanced. Premier Li Qiang launched construction of the 1.2 trillion yuan ($256.5 billion) hydropower project on the Yarlung Tsangpo river on Saturday. The initiative — which will consist of five cascade dams — promises to deliver a positive economic jolt for construction materials including metals, cement and glass. Iron ore is on course for the first monthly gain since January, as Beijing has continued a push to curb excess competition and overcapacity in the steel industry, fuelling expectations it could have positive impact on mill margins and lift raw-materials prices. The new dam project stands to benefit steelmakers, which have been grappling with a prolonged property crisis. The China Iron and Steel Association said on Friday it held a meeting with major steelmakers and the steel department chief at the industry ministry, at which participants vowed to step up efforts to curb so-called involution, a state of hyper-competition that hurts returns. China will also study setting up a new system to rein in overcapacity, the group said, without giving details. Iron ore surged 2.8 per cent to $US103.60/t at 10.45am in Singapore, while rebar and hot-rolled coil in Shanghai climbed more than 2 per cent. On the LME, copper was up 0.5 per cent to $US9830/t while zinc and aluminium also gained. Annie Lee
