BEIJING: Prices of copper, often used as an economic parameter, drifted lower on Wednesday as investors anticipated another aggressive interest rate hike from the US Federal Reserve.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange dipped 0.4% to $7,730 a tonne by 0141 GMT, while the most-traded October copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange was down 0.1% at 62,400 yuan ($8,872.46) a tonne.
The Fed started a two-day meeting on Tuesday, with rate futures traders pricing in an 83% chance of a 75 basis-point hike and a 17% probability of a 100 bps raise.
Fed watch
The US dollar strengthened to a near two-decade high on Tuesday, making it more expensive for holders of other currencies to buy greenback-priced commodities.
Some metals, however, were supported by expectations of strengthening demand in China thanks to strong operation rates among end-user manufacturers in September and October.
China’s commercial hub of Shanghai on Tuesday announced eight infrastructure projects with a total investment of 1.8 trillion yuan, to revive a COVID-impacted economy.
Copper under pressure as inventories rise ahead of Fed decision
ShFE nickel gained 0.8% to 195,980 yuan a tonne, tin rose 2% to 181,260 yuan a tonne, while aluminium lost 1.2% to 18,490 yuan a tonne, following data on Tuesday that showed global primary aluminium output rose 3.5% in August to 5.89 million tonnes.
LME aluminium slid 0.2% to $2,241 a tonne, lead was down 0.2% to $1,877 a tonne, zinc declined 0.2% to $3,121.50 a tonne.
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