[ad_1]
Recasts, adds comments, updates prices
BEIJING, Feb 3 (Reuters) – Copper prices inched higher on Friday, but were set for a weekly decline as investors fretted about a slow demand recovery in top consumer China and the U.S. dollar held firm.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange CMCU3 was up 0.2% at $9,070 a tonne by 0413 GMT. For the week so far, the contract was down 2.1%.
Citi Research economists said they believed a softer-than-anticipated China recovery and sustained manufacturing-sector weakness outside China would keep metals demand under pressure.
The bigger-than-usual inventory build-up in China over the Lunar New Year holiday despite subdued imports reflected the weakness in demand, said market participants.
Meanwhile, the dollar climbed, making it less attractive for non-dollar holders to buy the greenback-priced metal.
The most-traded March copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange SCFcv1 slipped 0.6% to 68,760 yuan ($10,196.18) a tonne.
Investors are now awaiting the U.S. jobs report due later in the day. The strength of the labour market is a key concern for the Federal Reserve, which announced a 25 basis-point interest rate hike earlier this week.
The latest supply disruption in Peru came as the huge Las Bambas copper mine was set to halt production because of road blockades by protesters.
“The news has sent treatment charges offers lower, but trading was very thin because many smelters are sitting on adequate stocks and not concerned about their first-quarter supply,” a Chinese smelter said.
Spot treatment charges in China assessed by Asian Metal AM-CN-CUCONC were at $83.50 a tonne on Feb.2, unchanged since Jan. 9.
Among other metals, LME aluminium CMAL3 slipped 0.4% to $2,605.50 a tonne, tin CMSN3 eased 1.8% to $28,850 and zinc CMZN3 fell 1% to $3,348.50, while lead CMPB3 advanced 0.6% to $2,145.50.
SHFE aluminium SAFcv1 slid 0.8% to 18,970 yuan a tonne and lead SPBcv1 inched 0.1% down to 15,290 yuan, while nickel SNIcv1 added 1% to 223,000 yuan and zinc SZNcv1 was up 0.1% at 24,185 yuan.
For the top stories in metals and other news, click TOP/MTL or MET/L
($1 = 6.7437 Chinese yuan)
(Reporting by Siyi Liu and Dominique Patton; editing by Uttaresh.V and Subhranshu Sahu)
((Siyi.Liu@thomsonreuters.com;))
The views and opinions expressed herein are the views and opinions of the author and do not necessarily reflect those of Nasdaq, Inc.
[ad_2]
Source link
