LONDON: Copper held above the USD14,000 mark on Friday as supply concerns and tight inventories left the metal on course for its strongest week in almost three months, while traders awaited news from a mining roundtable convened by US President Donald Trump. Benchmark three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange edged down 0.3percent to USD14,061 a metric ton as of 1600 GMT.
It was still set to finish the week up 2percent for its sixth consecutive weekly gain and the biggest since the week to May 8. Copper touched a six-month high of USD14,369.50 on Thursday after Reuters reported that the Democratic Republic of Congo had banned copper concentrate exports.
“The news reinforced an already bullish market backdrop characterised by low inventories, tight concentrate availability and ongoing supply disruptions,” ING said in a note.
Available LME copper stocks declined to 92,900 tons, the lowest since January, leaving the cash to three-month spread in steep backwardation of USD108.50 a ton, indicating near-term tightness. Backwardation refers to the market structure where prices for prompt delivery are higher those further forward.
Shanghai Futures Exchange copper stocks are at 70,116 tons, edging up 1.1percent from a more than two-year low last week. In the US, COMEX copper stocks rose for a 34th consecutive day to 654,571 tons as metal flows to the country ahead of a possible tariff on imports. Trump’s mining roundtable later on Friday is set to see a handful of deals and memorandums of understanding announced, according to a person familiar with the planning of the event.
Aluminium gained 0.6percent to USD3,277.50 a ton, touching its highest since June 23, while zinc eased 1.5percent to USD3,705.50 after notching an almost four-year peak on Thursday but was still set to end the week higher.
Backwardation in the three-month spreads remains steep for zinc at more than USD65 a ton but has collapsed for aluminium to USD3.75 from as much as USD45 on Tuesday. Lead added 0.1percent to USD1,886.50, nickel advanced 1.5percent to USD17,015 and tin shed 1.2percent to USD55,385.
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