BLBG: Copper Climbs in London on Dollar's Drop; Aluminum Also Rises
By Claudia Carpenter
Oct. 20 (Bloomberg) -- Copper rose in London for a second day as a lower dollar spurred demand for the metal from buyers using other currencies. Aluminum and lead also climbed.
The dollar fell for a second day against a basket of six currencies, including the euro and yen. Copper, used in pipes and wires, has dropped 28 percent this year while the dollar index has gained 7.1 percent.
``Dollar weakness is supportive because it makes commodities cheaper for buyers in other countries,'' said Peter Fertig, a consultant to Dresdner Kleinwort in Hainburg, Germany. Investors are less interested in commodities because of concern there will be a recession, he said.
Copper for delivery in three months gained $30, or 0.6 percent, to $4,840 a metric ton as of 9:20 a.m. on the London Metal Exchange. The price has fallen 38 percent in the past year.
Inventories of the metal in warehouses monitored by the LME jumped 950 tons to 212,400 tons, taking this year's increase to 7.6 percent. Stockpiles are climbing in Hamburg for the first time since January 2006 and are the highest since January in St. Louis.
Inventories are falling in South Korea near China, the world's largest consumer of the metal. Growth may accelerate after closures to clear the air for the Olympic Games in August, Fertig said. China's industrial production rose 11.4 percent in September from a year earlier, the statistics bureau said in Beijing today. Economists forecast a 13.4 percent increase, the median in a Bloomberg News survey.
China's copper production dropped 1 percent in September from August, according to Mainland Marketing Research Co.
Aluminum gained $10 to $2,215 a ton, lead rose $12 to $1,452 a ton and nickel fell $20 to $10,780 a ton. Tin gained $200 to $13,200 a ton and zinc rose $27 to $1,257 a ton.
To contact the reporter on this story: Claudia Carpenter in London at ccarpenter2@bloomberg.net or ccarpenter2@bloomberg.net