(15/04) Copper Gains Modestly, DOW Futures Rally

April 15, 2011

Copper surged today, cutting the latest spate of losses as the dollar dropped and equities surged. The Asian markets logged in decent to impressive gains and the DOW futures also gained, currently holding up by more than 70 points. Yesterday, LME Copper ended with its biggest one-day loss in about five weeks, caught in a broad-based commodity rout led by a sharp drop in oil and fears that Japan's nuclear crisis could stall a global recovery.

On Monday, the metal rallied to a five-week peak at $9,944.75, just 2.4% away from its mid-February record at $10,190. The metal drove up today amid a couple of mixed industry specific news. Workers at Codelco's El Teniente copper mine in Chile voted in favor of a wage deal today, averting a strike at the company's second-largest division and easing worries over a probable halt in the production. Meanwhile, the global mining major Rio Tinto Group's copper production fell 14% in the first quarter from a year earlier. Copper futures on COMEX are quoting at $4.39, up 0.18% per pound on the day in the electronic trading.

MCX Copper futures for April tested highs of Rs. 433.55 per kg and currently trade at Rs. 431.25, down Rs. 0.90 on the day or 0.21% on the day. US dollar has lost out to the Euro, falling to a fresh six month low above 1.4500 ahead of the key housing and consumer confidence data due later on today.