Mumbai, 4 May (Commoditiescontrol): London copper prices hardened on Wednesday as investors resorted to bargain buying as the recent sell-off on economic recovery worries, provided the opportunity. However, demand outlook still appeared weak due to COVID-19 lockdowns in top consumer China and a higher-interest-rate environment.
Benchmark three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) was up 1.1 percent at $9,509.50 a tonne, after falling more than 3 percent to its lowest since Dec. 20 at $9,403.50 on Tuesday.
Beijing is mass-testing residents to avert a lockdown similar to Shanghai over the past month. The Chinese capital reported 46 new symptomatic coronavirus cases for May 3, down from 51 cases a day earlier.
Investors await outcome of the Federal Reserve policy meeting due later in day, where the U.S. central bank is expected to raise rates by 50 basis points, and markets are pricing in an aggressive run of hikes as it tries to tame rapid inflation.
The global copper market is expected to see a surplus of 142,000 tonnes this year and of 352,000 tonnes in 2023, the International Copper Study Group (ICSG) said on Tuesday.
Chile, the world's top copper producer, has sharply lowered expectations for its 2022 economic growth as domestic demand is set to fall, the finance ministry said on Tuesday.
Fitch said on Tuesday it has cut China's GDP growth forecast for 2022 to 4.3 percent from 4.8 percent, saying pandemic-related disruptions have had an impact on the country's economy in the first two quarters of the year.
Hundreds of workers from a massive copper mine took to the streets of Peru's capital on Tuesday, waving flags and chanting slogans that demand the government find a solution to a grinding conflict that has temporarily shuttered the project.
LME aluminium eased 0.2 percent to $2,906 a tonne, zinc shed 1.4 percent to $3,906, while lead gained 0.9 percent to $2,270.50. The Shanghai Futures Exchange is closed for a public holiday.
(By Commoditiescontrol Bureau: +91-22-40015505)
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