Copper prices in London firmed on Friday but are on track for their biggest monthly fall since May 2023, driven by uneven economic growth in top consumer China and rising inventories.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was up 0.5% at $9,558.50 a metric tonne by 0216 GMT. The contract has fallen 4.8% in June, and is set for a sixth straight weekly loss if the current trend continues.
After hitting a record high of $11,104.50 on May 20, copper prices fell 14%, in part due to lackluster economic data from China and uncertainty over U.S. interest rates. ..
“Markets have changed their perspective to reflect the reality of fundamentals, and the reality is that demand is weak, particularly in China. At the same time, looking outside of China, the health of manufacturing remains unclear, with the US performing better, but Europe remains in a manufacturing recession,” said Natalie Scott-Gray, an analyst at StoneX.
“I think copper will average around $9,500 a tonne for the year, but prices will likely exceed $10,500 at the end of the year, when I think we’ll have the first rate cut of interest in the United States.
Copper stocks in warehouses monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange were at 322,910 tonnes last week, up from around 30,000 tonnes in January, reflecting plentiful supply in China.
The most-traded August copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose 0.2% to 78,060 yuan ($10,741.56), but was set to post its worst month since July 2022.
In the broader market, the dollar was headed for a monthly gain, making metals more expensive for holders of other currencies.
LME aluminium gained 0.5% to $2,504.50 a tonne, nickel edged up 0.7% to $17,220.00, zinc rose 0.6% to $2,947.50, lead added 0.5% to $2,189.50 and tin rose 0.6% to $32,440.
SHFE aluminum stabilized at 20,250 yuan per tonne, nickel remained stable at 134,920 yuan, lead rose 0.6% to 19,370 yuan, while zinc rose 0.6 % to 24,370 yuan and tin rose 1.1% to 269,560 yuan.
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DATA/EVENTS (GMT)
0600 PIB UK QQ, YY Q1
0645 France IPC (EU standard) Preliminary YY, MM June
0645 France IPC Prelim MM NSA Juin
0645 France Producer Price YY May
0755 Germany Unemployment change, SA rate June
1230 US consumption, adjusted MM May
1230 US Core PCE Price Index MM, YY May ($1 = 7.2671 Chinese yuan) (Reporting by Ashitha Shivaprasad in Bengaluru ; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)
