London copper ticked higher on Friday on signs of progress towards a trade deal between the world's two largest economies, but was set to post a weekly decline on concerns over Chinese demand.
CNBC reported that trade talks between the United States and China were scheduled for Oct. 10-11 in Washington, citing people familiar with the arrangements, while a senior Chinese diplomat said Beijing was willing to buy more US products.
However, concerns over slowing growth in the world's top metals consumer, China, put copper on track for a fall of 1.1 per cent this week, after a 3 per cent decline last week.
"At the current pace, our (global) demand growth estimates of 1.3 per cent for 2019 and 2020 are at risk," UBS said of copper in a note on base metals, adding that the strongest deceleration had been in Asia, including China.
"The modest build-up in copper exchange inventories of about 150,000 tonnes this year reflects unplanned smelter shutdowns, facilitated by low treatment charges," it added, forecasting a slightly more than 2 per cent increase in refined copper supply in 2020.
FUNDAMENTALS
COPPER: Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was up 0.2 per cent at $5,733 a tonne, as of 0736 GMT, after closing 1.1 per cent lower on Thursday. The most-traded copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange closed down 0.4 per cent at 46,920 yuan ($6,582.12) a tonne.
OPEN INTEREST: Market open interest in ShFE copper, a measure of liquidity, stood at an over four month-low of 552,206 lots on Thursday, as investors exited the market ahead of a week-long holiday in China from Oct. 1.
SHFE STOCKS: Copper inventories in warehouses monitored by the ShFE fell 16.9 per cent from the previous week to 117,455 tonnes, the lowest since July 5.
ALUMINIUM: Shanghai aluminium prices hit a six-week low of 13,920 yuan a tonne, below the 14,000 yuan threshold often considered a break-even price, amid concerns over weak demand in the run-up to China's National Day celebrations. In London, aluminium was on track to shed 3.2 per cent this week, which would be its steepest weekly drop so far this year.
CHINA: China's factory activity is expected to have contracted for a fifth straight month in September, a Reuters poll showed.
OTHER METALS: The rest of the LME complex was also higher, helped by a softer dollar. Nickel was the top performer in London, rising as much as 1.3 per cent to $17,425 a tonne.
MARKETS NEWS
Asian shares slipped to three-week lows as the release of a whistleblower complaint against US President Donald Trump added to uncertainties about the global economy, already reeling from the China-US trade war. - Source: economictimes.indiatimes.com -