Copper at 1-week high

Print this page Posted on : 01-20-2009 by recycleinme.com

Copper rose to a one-week high on the London Metal Exchange on prospects for revived demand as government stimulus packages try to lift economies out of recessions. Aluminium dropped to a five-year low.

Copper for delivery in three months gained $18, or 0.5 per cent, to $3,373 a tonne as of 10:30 a.m. on the London Metal Exchange and earlier climbed to $3,475, the highest since Jan. 12. The contract fell 1.3 per cent last week.

The MSCI World Index of global stocks advanced for a second day. Copper and equities both dropped last week as reports signalled the US recession is deepening.

China, the world's biggest copper buyer, will buy the metal overseas to boost state stockpiles, said Mr Wang Chiwei, executive director and vice president at Jiangxi Copper Co., Chinas second-largest smelter.

Aluminium declined $35 to $1,430 a tonne, the lowest since Oct. 2, 2003, as inventories in warehouses monitored by the London Metal Exchange jumped more than 2.5 million tonnes for the first time since July 26, 1994.

Inventories have climbed the most in the past year for aluminium followed by zinc and copper. Lead inventories are down 5 per cent in the past year.

Lead dropped $9 to $1,160 a tonne, nickel increased $145 to $11,000 a tonne and zinc jumped $9 to $1,260. Tin rose $150 to $11,050 a tonne.

Source : Business Line