London copper prices ride on demand hopes

MELBOURNE — London copper prices on Monday recovered from their lowest in more than three weeks hit in the previous session, after China cut banks’ reserve requirements, improving liquidity and supporting prospects for metals demand.

China’s central bank said on Sunday it would cut the amount of cash that some banks must hold as reserves by 50 basis points ( bps), releasing $ 108 billion in liquidity, to accelerate the pace of debt-for-equity swaps and spur lending to smaller firms.

“This move will help cushion the blow from the impact of a looming trade war with the United States and also helps to ease liquidity in (the) domestic market,” said broker Argonaut Securities in a report.

Fears of a full- blown trade war with Washington had magnified concerns about the outlook for the world’s second- largest economy, following weaker-thanexpected growth data for May.

London Metal Exchange (LME) copper was up 0.30% at $ 6,810 a ton, as of 0416 GMT. Prices ended flat on Friday, when they hit their lowest since late May at $6768 a ton.

Shanghai Futures Exchange copper rose by 0.60% to 52,060 yuan ($7,986) a ton.

Chile’s Codelco, the world’s top copper miner, said late on Friday that workers’ unions at its small Salvador copper division had rejected an early wage deal from the company, pushing off further negotiations until later this year when its contract expires.

Reflecting a pickup in demand, US exchange copper stocks have dropped by 10% in the past six weeks, reversing an uptrend seen since December.

LME stocks were down by more than a fifth from a peak in late March, with nearly 12,000 tons reserved on Friday to be taken from warehouses.

The dollar was near its lowest since mid-June, lending support to metals.

Hedge funds and money managers trimmed a net long position in copper futures and options in the week to June 19, US Commodity Futures Trading Commission data showed on Friday.

Reflecting tight supply of zinc in spot markets, the cash price is trading at nearly $60 above the benchmark price, the highest since last October. —