By Onome Amuge.
Copper prices rose to their biggest weekly growth since late July after data from top metals consumer China showed signs of stabilising the economy.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) gained 0.25 per cent at $8,438.5 per metric tonne, after reaching $8,507.5, the highest level since Sept. 4.
According to reports, China’s factory output and retail sales grew at a faster pace in August, though tumbling investment in the crisis-hit property sector threatens to undercut a flurry of support steps.
Thu Lan Nguyen, an analyst at Commerzbank said the figures are likely to have a net positive effect on base metals prices given that they should further allay fears that the momentum of growth in China, the largest consumer, could continue to slow.
“That said, no pronounced price rally can be expected until the real estate market shows clearer signs of recovering,” Nguyen added.
Meanwhile, copper inventories in warehouses monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange have been rising for a month and reached their highest level since late July this week.
Copper stocks in LME-registered warehouses are also at their highest since October 2022, after sharp growth over July-September.
The discount for near-term delivery versus the LME three-month copper contract rose, indicating plentiful immediate supply. It closed at $45.25 per tonne during the later stages of the week, its one-month high, compared with $4.5 on Sept. 5.
Also lending support to copper was the latest report in the United States,where the United Auto Workers union launched simultaneous strikes at three factories owned by General Motors, Ford and Chrysler-owner Stellantis, kicking off the most ambitious U.S. industrial labour action in decades.
It was a mixed market for other base metals as LME aluminium was down 1.2 per cent to $2,199 a tonne after China’s monthly production reached record high in August. Tin lost 0.8 per cent to $25,685, zinc was up 0.1 per cent to $2,573, lead advanced 0.5 per cent to $2,255, while nickel lost 0.9 per cent to $20,170.
