Copper slips on uncertainty but remains on track for weekly gain

• London copper was on track for a rise of about 2pc, its first gain in six weeks after better than expected factory data from China boosted prices earlier in the week.
• Low copper prices and lockdowns at major suppliers have raised concerns over supply disruptions of copper, used widely in construction, power and manufacturing.

LONDON: Copper prices slipped on Friday along with most industrial metals as investors were kept on the sidelines by uncertainty over how much the coronavirus pandemic would hurt demand.

Traders and fund managers were having difficulty calculating which would be greater; the loss of demand as industry shuts down in many areas or weaker production because of mine closures.

"There are so many multiples of unknowns right now and the market is trying to digest all that," said Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank in Copenhagen.

Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) fell 0.3pc to $4,880.50 a tonne in official trading, holding well above a four-year low of $4,371 touched about two weeks ago.

On a weekly basis, London copper was on track for a rise of about 2pc, its first gain in six weeks after better than expected factory data from China boosted prices earlier in the week.

"Copper has taken a lot of bad news on the chin without seeing renewed weakness, so I have the feeling that, unless we see significant renewed stock market falls, copper is on track to challenge the psychological $5,000 level," Hansen said.

Low copper prices and lockdowns at major suppliers have raised concerns over supply disruptions of copper, used widely in construction, power and manufacturing.

The outlook for industrial metals demand remains grim after the coronavirus pandemic surpassed one million cases globally and the US Federal Reserve said that recession had arrived in the world's biggest economy

LEAD STOCKS: Lead inventories monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange (ShFE) fell for a sixth straight week to a 28-month low as buyers sought stocks in exchange warehouses because of a lack of recycled metal in China, data released on Friday showed.

That data, however, failed to help LME lead prices, which slipped 1.4pc to $1,674 a tonne.

TIN: LME tin was down only 0.03pc at $14,370 a tonne despite LME inventories jumping 24pc to 7,590 tonnes, their highest since Feb. 26, according to daily LME data.

RIO TINTO: Miner Rio Tinto said it could not supply contracted copper to customers after an emergency shutdown at its Kennecott smelter in the United States following an earthquake last month.

CHINA: The services sector in China struggled to get back on its feet in March after a brutal month of shop closures and public lockdowns amid the coronavirus pandemic, a private survey showed.

PRICES: LME aluminium lost 0.3pc in official trading to $1,486 a tonne after hitting a four-year low in the previous session. Nickel fell 0.5pc to $11,257 a tonne and zinc shed 0.6pc to $1,876.