DJ BASE METALS: Comex Copper Seen 7 Cents Lower At Pit Open
By Matt Whittaker
Of DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
NEW YORK (Dow Jones)-March copper futures are expected to open floor trading
around 7 cents lower Friday, based on electronic activity ahead of the pit
session on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
In overnight activity, base metals steadied after a heavy selloff in
anticipation of poor U.S. jobs data. Copper, aluminum and lead were trading at
their lowest in years, weighing on other metals.
In other markets that have the potential to impact metals in the short term,
the euro is down to $1.2688 from $1.2775 late Thursday afternoon. In screen
trading ahead of the pit open, the December S&P 500 futures are down 7.60
points. January crude is up 8 cents in overnight activity.
U.S. economic reports on Friday include November employment at 8:30 a.m. EST
(1330 GMT) with non-farm payrolls expected down 350,000 and the unemployment
rate expected at 6.8%.
Inventories of copper stored in London Metal Exchange warehouses rose 4,325
metric tons Friday, leaving them at 297,300. The most recent Comex inventory
data, released late Thursday afternoon, were unchanged at 17,113 short tons.
Once-a-week data released on Friday's by the Shanghai Futures Exchange showed
a weekly rise of 3,363 metric tons to 19,698.
-By Matt Whittaker, Dow Jones Newswires; 201-938-5959;
matt.whittaker@dowjones.com
