BLBG: Copper Futures Fall to 3-Year Low in N.Y. as Inventories Climb
By Millie Munshi
Nov. 12 (Bloomberg) -- Copper fell to the lowest price in three years as inventories of the metal climbed to the highest since 2004.
Stockpiles monitored by the London Metal Exchange rose 1.7 percent to 270,100 metric tons today, the highest level since March 4, 2004. Since June 30, LME supplies have more than doubled, and copper prices have tumbled by more than half.
``There's metal continuing to come into warehouses, and that is pushing the price down because it's pointing to falling demand,'' said Patrick Chidley, an analyst at Barnard Jacob Mellet in Stamford, Connecticut.
Copper futures for December delivery dropped 1.3 cents, or 0.8 percent, to $1.635 a pound at 9:41 a.m. on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. Earlier, the metal touched $1.621, the lowest for a most-active contract since Sept. 19, 2005.
On the LME, copper for delivery in three months fell $35, or 1 percent, to $3,590 a metric ton ($1.63 a pound).
To contact the reporter on this story: Millie Munshi in New York at mmunshi@bloomberg.net.