BLBG: Copper Rises to 4-Month Peak, Zinc Advances on Chinese Imports
Copper rose to a four-month high in London and zinc gained after imports surged into China, the world’s biggest user of both metals. Lead climbed to the highest since November.
China’s imports of refined copper doubled from a year earlier to 270,948 metric tons in February, and zinc purchases surged more than eightfold to 77,205 tons, according to trade data today. Imports were the most since at least 2002 for copper and the highest since November 2005 for zinc, according to Barclays Capital.
“With Chinese metal imports so strong, either domestic demand is much stronger than anyone thought or Chinese stockpiles are rising very fast indeed,” said Gayle Berry, an analyst at Barclays in London. “Concern that demand might be stronger than previously thought is keeping metals well bid.”
Copper for delivery in three months rose $115.25, or 2.9 percent, to $4,070.25 a metric ton at 10:54 a.m. on the London Metal Exchange. It climbed earlier to $4,135, the highest since Nov. 10. Zinc added $32, or 2.5 percent, to $1,292 a ton after advancing as high as $1,310, the highest since Jan. 14.
Copper, used in wiring and plumbing, has risen 33 percent this year in London, driven by rising imports from China. Zinc, used to rust-proof steel, is up 7 percent.
“I reckon that Chinese aluminum imports are going to rocket in March,” Berry said.
Aluminum Stockpiles
Inventories of aluminum in Asian warehouses monitored by the LME fell 0.3 percent last week, the first decline since early September. They were down another 0.2 percent today at 907,025 tons, according to exchange data.
“Metal is being moved out of Asian warehouses, and I believe it’s going into China on arbitrage trade,” Berry said.
Zinc in Shanghai is still about $400 higher than the LME price, spurring more arbitrage buying in London, she said. The State Reserve Bureau, China’s government stockpiling agency, has bought between 300,000 and 400,000 tons of copper, 159,000 tons of zinc and 580,000 tons of aluminum, Macquarie Group Ltd. said in a report today.
Aluminum for three-month delivery rose $5, or 0.3 percent, to $1,464 a ton. The lightweight metal is used in industries from packaging to aerospace.
Lead gained 1.9 percent to $1,370 a ton after climbing as high as $1,380, the highest since Nov. 14. Nickel added 0.3 percent to $10,000 a ton, and tin jumped 3 percent to $10,400 a ton.
