Copper climbs in LME trade

Print this page Posted on : 02-16-2010 by recycleinme.com

Feb. 15

Copper climbed in London as accelerating growth in Japan, the world’s fourth- largest consumer of the metal, may support demand for metals.

Japan’s gross domestic product grew at an annual 4.6 per cent pace in the fourth quarter, the Cabinet Office said in Tokyo, more than the 3.5 per cent median estimate of economists surveyed by Bloomberg. One positive thing for the bulls was the Japanese GDP data, said Mr David Thurtell, a Citigroup Inc. analyst in London. Japan is a significant consumer of copper, he said.

Copper for three- month delivery jumped $ 70, or 1 per cent, to $ 6,880 a tonne at 12: 33 p. m. on the London Metal Exchange. Prices last week gained 8.4 per cent, the most since July. Futures for delivery in March climbed 0.6 per cent to $ 3.101 a pound in electronic trading on the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.

OTHER BUYERS

Reduced copper imports by China will be more than offset by purchases from other buyers as the global market moves into deficit, according to Macquarie Group Ltd.

The decline in Chinese imports of 546,000 tonnes we forecast this year will be more than offset by rising demand elsewhere, Macquarie analysts including Mr Colin Hamilton wrote in an a weekly report. The 2010 market balance is a deficit of 300,000 to 400,000 tonnes following last year’s surplus.

Aluminium advanced 0.7 per cent to $ 2,070 a tonne. Stockpiles of the metal in warehouses monitored by LME fell for a 17th day, the longest streak since March 2005. Zinc increased 2.1 per cent to $ 2,215 a tonne and lead increased 1.1 per cent to $ 2,158 a tonne. Nickel climbed 1.9 per cent to $ 18,995 a tonne and tin advanced 1.1 per cent to $ 16,400 a tonne.

Source : Business Line