Market and product
Copper Drives Metals Higher on Speculation of Stimulus
The metal for delivery in three months on the London Metal Exchange added as much as 0.7 percent to $6,873 a metric ton and was at $6,850 at 3 p.m. in Hong Kong. It closed at $6,825 yesterday, the lowest since June 20. The metal has fallen 2.2 percent this week, extending its loss to 7.1 percent this year, the most among the six main metals on the LME.
Economic data this week that showed a slowdown in global growth stoked speculation that central banks will maintain stimulus. The U.S. posted worse-than-forecast jobless claims and retail-sales data, Chinese credit expansion plunged, the euro area said growth unexpectedly stalled in the second quarter and Japan reported a contraction.
“It’s a combination of a technical rebound and expectation of more stimulus to support growth,” said Chae Un Soo, a metals trader at Korea Exchange Bank Futures Ltd. There’s been some consumer buying interest around $6,800 for copper, he said.
The LME Index of the six metals is down 1.7 percent this week, heading for a third weekly decline. That was the biggest weekly drop since the five days through March 14. China’s copper output rose last month to the highest since November, according to data from the National Bureau of Statistics.
In New York, the metal for December delivery gained 0.1 percent to $3.117 a pound. The October contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange fell 10 yuan to close at 48,910 yuan ($7,955) a ton.
On the LME, aluminum, lead, tin and zinc advanced while nickel was little changed.
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