London copper edges up on demand view, tight mine supply

  • Meanwhile, tight copper concentrate supply remained a concern for downstream copper players.
17 Mar, 2021

HANOI: London copper prices rose on Wednesday as a bright demand outlook and supply disruptions in some South American mines offset pressure from rising LME exchange inventories.

Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange rose 0.7% to $9,020 a tonne by 0552 GMT, while the most-traded May copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange fell 0.8% to 66,870 yuan ($10,284.53) a tonne.

"Fundamentals remain healthy, especially with the supply and logistics disruptions in South America, while demand outlook looks promising based on positive macro data," said a Singapore-based copper analyst.

Data from top consumer China showed stronger-than-expected industrial growth in the first two months of 2021, while new lending in the country fell less than expected in February.

Meanwhile, tight copper concentrate supply remained a concern for downstream copper players.

"However, risk sentiment is definitely dampened with the rising US Treasury yield and a stronger US dollar in the short term, which definitely weighed on copper prices," the analyst said.

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