Swapping aluminum for copper will maintain China’s resources, group says
China depends on overseas imports for 60% of its aluminum resources as opposed to 70% of its copper resources.
The copper price rose on Thursday, as a weaker dollar made greenback-priced metals cheaper to holders of other currencies.
Copper for delivery in December rose 2.4% on the Comex market in New York, touching $3.79 per pound ($8,338 per tonne).
[Click here for an interactive chart of copper prices]
The dollar fell sharply on Thursday after US consumer prices rose less than expected last month. The country’s official inflation rate cooled to 7.7%, down from 8.2% in August and below the 7.9% increase that economists were expecting.
“In the absence of any changes in the micro or macro, (base metals) should see a continued chop sideways,” said Marex analyst Zenon Ho, adding that uncertainty remained for the market amid global conflicts and the US mid-term elections.
Meanwhile, Chinese province Henan approved 26.2 billion yuan ($3.65bn) to support financing for troubled real estate projects and to ensure timely deliveries of presold homes, the National Business Daily reported, which could help with metals demand.
However, weak economic data from China and rising coronavirus cases in the world’s largest metals consumer continued to dampen risk sentiment.
(With files from Reuters)
