AFX: BASE METALS: Comex Copper Seen 3 Cents Lower At Pit Open
BASE METALS: Comex Copper Seen 3 Cents Lower At Pit Open
DOW JONES NEWSWIRES
May copper futures are expected to open floor trading around 3 cents a pound lower Friday, based on electronic activity ahead of the pit session on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
Copper and other London Metal Exchange base metals traded lower overnight largely on profit-taking, overseas analysts said. The stronger dollar played a role.
In other markets that have the potential to impact metals in the short term, the euro was down to $1.3367 from $1.3526 late Thursday afternoon. In screen trading ahead of the pit open, the June S&P 500 futures were down 4.70 points to 822.90. May crude oil was down $1.16 to $53.18 a barrel in overnight activity.
U.S. economic data Friday begin with February personal income and spending at 8:30 a.m. EDT (1230 GMT). The forecast is for a 0.2% fall in income but a 0.2% gain in spending.
The University of Michigan consumer-sentiment index is due out at 9:55 a.m. EDT (1355 GMT). The forecast is for a reading of 57, compared to 56.6 in the middle of the month.
In New York Thursday, the combination of optimism about demand prospects and news suggesting reduced global copper output enabled prices to rise. May copper rose 5.20 cents to settle at $1.8550 per pound
Inventories of copper stored in London Metal Exchange warehouses fell 3,150 metric tons on Friday, leaving them at 500,750. The most recent Comex inventory data, released late Thursday afternoon, were up 358 short tons at 45,121 short tons.
Once-a-week data showed a fall of 6,227 metric tons in Shanghai Futures Exchange inventories, leaving the total at 25,181 metric tons.
-By Allen Sykora, Dow Jones Newswires; 541-318-8765; allen.sykora@dowjones.com
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