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Recasts, adds comments, updates prices
BEIJING, March 27 (Reuters) – Copper prices climbed on Monday, supported by lowered global supplies, while the nickel contract on the London Metal Exchange (LME) slipped on its first day trading during Asian hours since last March.
Three-month copper on the LME CMCU3 added 0.4% to $8,960 a tonne by 0442 GMT, and the most-traded May copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange SCFcv1 was up 0.2% to 69,250 yuan ($10,073.61) a tonne.
Copper inventories in warehouses monitored by SHFE CU-STX-SGH were down 11.6% last Friday, falling for a fourth consecutive week. Stocks have declined 36.2% so far to 161,152 tonnes, from a peak in late February.
Lowered stocks, improving demand and prospect of a pause of the U.S. Federal Reserve’s interest rate hikes supported metal prices.
Still, the market was clouded by global banking woes, with investors assessing moves by authorities and regulators.
The dollar was firm on Monday, placing some pressure on the greenback-priced commodity.
LME nickel CMNI3 slipped 0.2% to $23,425 a tonne, with trading volume at 59 lots.
The reopening of Asian hour could make it easier for Asia-based traders to seek for profits based on the price difference between London and Shanghai, hence improving some liquidity in the market, traders said.
However, illiquid trading conditions and volatile prices are likely to remain a feature of LME nickel trading in the near-term, according to Jason Sappor, senior analyst at Metals and Mining Research at S&P Global Commodity Insights.
Class 1 nickel, the type of primary nickel that can be delivered against LME and SHFE contracts, represented around only 30% of global primary nickel production in 2021, Sappor said.
SHFE nickel SNIcv1 rose 3.1% to 182,510 yuan a tonne, aluminium SAFcv1 gained 0.5% to 18,480 yuan, tin SSNcv1 jumped 3.8% to 202,040 yuan, and zinc SZNcv1 added 0.5% to 22,540 yuan.
LME aluminium CMAL3 dipped 0.1% to $2,335 a tonne and tin CMSN3 climbed 1% to $25,065, while zinc CMZN3 shed 0.1% to $2,890 and lead CMPB3 eased 0.2% to $2,122.
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($1 = 6.8744 Chinese yuan renminbi)
(Reporting by Siyi Liu and Dominique Patton; Editing by Varun H K)
((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.
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