RTRS: U.S. copper holds early ground despite jobs data
NEW YORK, Nov 7 (Reuters) - U.S. copper futures held a slightly positive tone in early business on Friday, despite grim unemployment data that underscored fears of a potentially deep recession in the world's largest economy.
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* Copper for December delivery HGZ8 was up 1.10 cents at $1.7365 a lb by 10:56 a.m. EST (1556 GMT) on the New York Mercantile Exchange's COMEX division.
* Range $1.6955 to $1.7940.
* COMEX estimated volume at 6,209 lots by 9 a.m.
* U.S. employers slashed an unexpectedly steep 240,000 jobs from payrolls in October and the jobless rate shot up to a 14-1/2-year high at 6.5 percent.
* September registered the biggest monthly loss in jobs in nearly seven years. - U.S. Labor Department. [ID:nN06438380]
* COMEX copper's muted reaction to the weak jobs figures was a reflection of the market discounting a bearish reading in the run-up to the figures - Frank Lesh, broker and futures analyst with Future Path Trading in Chicago.
* Copper's gains underpinned by strength in U.S. equities.
* Dow Jones industrial average .DJI up 215.85 points, or 2.48 percent, at 8,911.64. Standard & Poor's 500 Index .SPX up 22.12 points, or 2.44 percent, at 927.00. Nasdaq Composite Index .IXIC up 37.62 points, or 2.34 percent, at 1,646.32.
* The weight of bearish sentiment and technical selling will continue to cap the market in the near-term - RBC Capital Markets.
* International Monetary Fund expects 2009 global economic growth of 2.2 percent, down from 3.7 percent this year. [ID:nSP405205]
* Copper's weakened demand reflected in continuous builds in inventories.
* London Metal Exchange-registered copper warehouse stocks added 2,250 tonnes on Friday, bringing total levels to 254,800 tonnes -- their highest since March 2004.
* Copper inventories in warehouses monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange fell 0.6 percent to 24,637 tonnes in the week ended Thursday, from 24,788 tonnes the previous week. [ID:nBJD000428]
* China's October imports of unwrought copper and semi-finished copper products may fall from the previous month as volatile prices spurred buyers to cancel or delay spot bookings. [ID:nHKG37732]
* LME copper for three-month delivery at $3,810 a tonne, up from an earlier two-week low at $3,730.75 and compared with $3,805 at the close on Thursday. (Reporting by Chris Kelly; Editing by Walter Bagley)
