(18/04) METALS-Copper extends losing streak on China inflation

April 18, 2011

Copper fell for a fifth straight day
on Friday, posting its biggest weekly loss since mid-March, as mounting
inflationary pressure in China cast a shadow over the near-term demand
outlook.

Copper again shunned rallies in the precious metals complex, with gold and
silver surging to record and 31-year highs, respectively, as investors bought
both metals as a hedge against global inflation worries and rising oil prices.

Chinese consumer price inflation sped to 5.4 percent in the year to March,
the fastest since July 2008 and topping market forecasts of 5.2 percent. Gross
domestic product in China, the world's top copper buyer, eased a touch.
Copper inventories at LME warehouses fell 375 tonnes to 450,425 tonnes, a
small respite in an overall uptrend that has seen stocks of the metal climb by
a fifth so far this year.

(18/04) Copper under pressure as inflation rises globally

April 15, 2011

Copper fell on Friday, heading for a fifth straight session of losses as investors worried Chinese inflation at a 32-month high would lead to tighter monetary policy hitting demand in the world’s top metals buyer.

Chinese consumer price inflation sped to 5.4 percent in the year to March, the fastest since July 2008 and topping market forecasts for a 5.2 percent increase. Gross domestic product eased a touch in the world’s top copper buyer.

Copper for three-months delivery on the London Metal Exchange (LME) was at $9,383 a tonne at 1435 GMT from Thursday’s close of $9,410.

“The market is gradually getting a little bit more worried about what Chinese growth is going to look like over the medium term because of the ongoing tightening,” Jesper Dannesboe, senior commodity strategist at Societe Generale, said. “Growth is going to slow down quite significantly, it’s going to be very bumpy.”

China’s production of refined copper and primary aluminium rose 23.7 percent and 7.4 percent respectively from a year earlier in March, hitting monthly records for both metals on expanded capacity and sufficient supply of raw materials.

Copper inventories at LME warehouses fell 375 tonnes to 450,425 tonnes on Thursday, showing little respite in an upward trend that has seen stocks of the metal used in power and construction climb by a fifth so far this year.
Copper briefly pared some losses after a bout of U.S. data. A gauge of manufacturing in New York State rose in April to its highest level in a year, and the state employment index jumped to its highest since May 2004, the New York Federal Reserve said in a report.

(18/04) Copper futures tumble for 3rd day straight

April 18, 2011

Copper prices on the Shanghai Futures Exchange continued to tumble recording the third straight day of losses.

The most active June copper contract fell about 1% to CNY 71,150 per tonne at the close of trading. The contract opened Thursday morning down 0.7% from Wednesday's settlement after prices continued to fall in international markets.

Analysts said that the decline tracked copper futures on the London Metals Exchange during the previous session. The 3 month LME copper contract stood at USD 9,469 per tonne when the SHFE closed in Shanghai. The contract had been trading at USD 9,675 per tonne when the SHFE closed Wednesday.

Mr Yin Chuanxiang an analyst for Jin Yuan Futures said that the market remained concerned about US investment bank Goldman Sachs' recent bet that copper prices will fall.

Mr Yin said that nonetheless, the price of copper stayed within recent trading bounds. So I am optimistic about the price in the short term. Copper on the Changjiang Nonferrous Metals Trading Market, a major spot metals market in Shanghai traded Thursday at an average price of CNY 71,575 per tonne down CNY 375 from the previous day.

(18/04) METALS-Copper ticks up; China policy eyed, technicals point higher

April 18, 2011

Copper prices reversed early
losses on Monday, focusing on a more positive technical outlook,
with some in the market viewing Sunday's reserve ratio hike as a
step closer to the end of the monetary tightening cycle in
China.

Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange rose
$30 to $9,435 a tonne by 0348 GMT. Shanghai's most-active June
copper futures contract SCFcv1 rose 280 yuan to 71,110 yuan a
tonne, after ending last week down 3.5 percent, its biggest
weekly drop in a month.
China's central bank said on Sunday it would raise lenders'
required reserves by 50 basis points, the fourth time this year
it has made such a move.

The move increases the required reserve ratio for the
country's biggest banks to a record 20.5 percent, another step
in the government's campaign to control inflation.

(18/04) METALS-Copper ticks up; China policy eyed, technicals point higher

April 18, 2011

Copper prices reversed early
losses on Monday, focusing on a more positive technical outlook,
with some in the market viewing China's reserve ratio hike as a
step closer to the end of the monetary tightening cycle.

Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange rose
$31.75 to $9,436.75 a tonne by 0700 GMT. Shanghai's most-active
June copper futures contract SCFcv1 rose 210 yuan to 71,040
yuan a tonne, after ending last week down 3.5 percent, its
biggest weekly drop in a month.

Shanghai copper traded at a discount of 1,126 yuan versus
the benchmark LME contract, counting for China's 17 percent VAT.
Technically, copper prices could rebound to $9,500, Reuters
analyst Wang Tao said, based on an Elliott wave analysis of
short-term market behaviour.
Copper may also see pressure after the International Copper
Study Group (ICSG) trimmed its 2011 global copper market deficit
forecast to 377,000 tonnes, about 20,000 tonnes narrower than
its previous forecast in October 2010.

(18/04) METALS-Copper edges up, takes China move in its stride

April 18, 2011

Copper edged up on Monday as investors closed short positions after five straight days of price declines, outweighing concerns about China's raising banks' required reserves and the effect of a stronger dollar.

Copper for three-months delivery on the London Metal Exchange traded at $9,431 a tonne at 0915 GMT, up from a close of $9,405 a tonne on Friday.

China raised banks' reserve requirements on Sunday for the fourth time this year, extending the fight against excessive liquidity and stubbornly high inflation there. Chinese stocks rose to a five-month high as many investors had factored the much anticipated measure.
ut analysts said the monetary tightening also sent a positive signal as it showed the world's second-largest economy had its growth under control.

Stocks of copper in LME warehouses last rose 1,350 tonnes to 451,775 tonnes, their highest since June 2010. The majority of these inflows went into warehouses in Asia, supporting investors' concerns that Chinese demand is lacklustre. "People are still talking a lot about the high inventories in China for copper," Standard Chartered's Smith said.

The dollar strengthened against a basket of major currencies, softening metals demand from non-U.S. investors.

Also keeping sentiment in check, European equities fell as the crisis in the euro zone continued to dampen risk appetite.

(15/04) Copper prices down on higher inventories, China inflation

April 15, 2011

Copper prices were lower again Thursday on more concerns about inflation in China and as inventories continue to grow.

May copper was a cent lower to $4.28 per pound in New York trade, while three-month contracts were down $105 to $9,410 per tonne on the London Metal Exchange.

Media reports said that it is likely inflation was up as much as 5.4 percent in China in March over the same month last year, and investors worried that if the reported figure turns out to be accurate, it could lead to more monetary policy tightening that could hurt demand for copper in the Asian nation.

Inventories of copper in warehouses monitored by the LME added another 875 tonnes during the session to their highest levels since last June, while gains in US producer prices in March also hurt prices.
Precious metals prices, however, were higher in New York trade, helped by a weaker US dollar and by concerns about European debt problems and on the US news on producer prices and a Labor Department report that showed first-time claims for unemployment benefits in the US were up by 27,000 last week.