BEIJING: London copper climbed on Wednesday on a weaker US dollar as traders awaited a key US inflation report later today, while prices on the CME hovered around a record high.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) was up 0.2% at $10,129.50 per metric ton by 0446 GMT, while the most-traded June copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) was unmoved at 81,840 yuan ($11,328.59) a ton.
The dollar traded near a one-month low versus the euro on Wednesday amid lower Treasury yields as traders braced for a key US inflation report later in the day that could dictate the path of Federal Reserve policy.
A weaker dollar makes it cheaper to buy the greenback-priced commodity.
Elsewhere, the CME May contract advanced 2.6% to $5.081 a pound, near a record high hit in the previous session because of robust demand in the United States and fund buying. Investors have raised their bets on copper given a supply shortage of raw material this year and booming demand outlook.
Most base metals slip as data from top consumer China disappoints
The recent surge of US prices came with a short squeeze on the futures market as traders appear to have been caught short on their trades and are being forced to buy back to cover their positions, ANZ analysts said.
LME aluminium edged 0.1% lower at $2,553.50 a ton, tin climbed 1% to $33,695, nickel gained 0.5% to $19,175, zinc moved 0.9% higher to $3,029.50 and lead rose 0.9% to $2,280.
SHFE aluminium declined 0.4% to 20,495 yuan a ton, zinc added 0.6% to 23,940 yuan, nickel increased 0.2% at 144,640 yuan, lead advanced 2.5% to 18,775 yuan and tin rose 2.5% to 276,750 yuan.
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