Copper eases from record highs as investors book profits
Copper eased on Friday, erasing gains it made in the speculative rush in the previous session as investors booked profits, but the metal still headed for a monthly gain.
By Reuters |
Copper eased on Friday, erasing gains it made in the speculative rush in the previous session as investors booked profits, but the metal still headed for a monthly gain.
The most-active copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange closed daytime trading down 2.82% to 103,680 yuan ($14,919.70) a metric ton, pulling back from an all-time high of 114,160 yuan, but it ended January up near 4%.
The benchmark three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange dropped 2.78% to $13,278.50 a ton, retreating from a record of $ 14,527.50. London copper, however, is poised to end the week up near 7%.
Copper's pullback was part of a broad profit-taking decline in the metals after a record-setting rally. Gold and silver both slipped, while all base metals posted losses.
A firmer dollar also fuelled the retreat.
The sell-off in copper was also rooted in worries about shrinking demand amid record-high prices for the red metal, especially in the largest consumer market, China.
The Yangshan copper premium , which reflects Chinese appetite for imported copper, was at $23 a ton on Thursday and hovered below $25, compared with above $40 entering January.
Spot copper price in China remained at a 170 yuan per ton discount to the SHFE copper price , reflecting weak demand for the red metal, widely used in construction and power in China.
Copper's pull-back "reflected a broader shift into risk-off positioning", analysts at ING Economics said in a note.
"The underlying backdrop for copper and the wider metals complex remains constructive. Expectations of a weaker dollar, anticipated rate cuts, firm investor appetite for real assets, and persistently tight supply-demand conditions continue to provide support."
Meanwhile, the market is also waiting for U.S. President Donald Trump to announce his nominee for the Federal Reserve Chair, a decision he said he intended to announce on Friday.
Elsewhere on SHFE, aluminium declined 3.65%, lead dropped 1.52%, nickel pulled back 3.94%, tin tumbled 8.26% and zinc posted sole gain at 0.64%.
Among other LME metals, aluminium declined 1.52%, zinc dropped 0.42%, lead was down 0.45%, nickel lost 2.80% while tin shed 5.95%. ($1 = 6.9492 Chinese yuan renminbi)
The most-active copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange closed daytime trading down 2.82% to 103,680 yuan ($14,919.70) a metric ton, pulling back from an all-time high of 114,160 yuan, but it ended January up near 4%.
The benchmark three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange dropped 2.78% to $13,278.50 a ton, retreating from a record of $ 14,527.50. London copper, however, is poised to end the week up near 7%.
Copper's pullback was part of a broad profit-taking decline in the metals after a record-setting rally. Gold and silver both slipped, while all base metals posted losses.
A firmer dollar also fuelled the retreat.
The sell-off in copper was also rooted in worries about shrinking demand amid record-high prices for the red metal, especially in the largest consumer market, China.
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The Yangshan copper premium , which reflects Chinese appetite for imported copper, was at $23 a ton on Thursday and hovered below $25, compared with above $40 entering January.
Spot copper price in China remained at a 170 yuan per ton discount to the SHFE copper price , reflecting weak demand for the red metal, widely used in construction and power in China.
Copper's pull-back "reflected a broader shift into risk-off positioning", analysts at ING Economics said in a note.
"The underlying backdrop for copper and the wider metals complex remains constructive. Expectations of a weaker dollar, anticipated rate cuts, firm investor appetite for real assets, and persistently tight supply-demand conditions continue to provide support."
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Meanwhile, the market is also waiting for U.S. President Donald Trump to announce his nominee for the Federal Reserve Chair, a decision he said he intended to announce on Friday.
Elsewhere on SHFE, aluminium declined 3.65%, lead dropped 1.52%, nickel pulled back 3.94%, tin tumbled 8.26% and zinc posted sole gain at 0.64%.
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Among other LME metals, aluminium declined 1.52%, zinc dropped 0.42%, lead was down 0.45%, nickel lost 2.80% while tin shed 5.95%. ($1 = 6.9492 Chinese yuan renminbi)
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