Aug. 3 (Bloomberg) -- Copper declined for the first time in five days in Asia as some investors sold the metal to lock in gains after rising to a three-month high yesterday. Zinc, lead and nickel also fell. Copper for delivery in three months fell as much as 1.3 percent to $7,412.25 a metric ton on the London Metal Exchange, and traded at $7,428 a ton at 11:54 a.m. in Shanghai. The metal closed at a $7,510 a ton yesterday, the highest price since April 29, as a rally in equities increased confidence in global economic recovery. Futures in New York fell 0.7 percent. “Now is a good time to reap profits, given the $1,000 increase in the past 10 days,” Wu Jianjian, an analyst at Yong’an Futures Co., said by phone from Zhejiang. Still, “the positive sentiment over equities and commodities indicates copper probably won’t fall much in coming days.” Asian stocks increased today, driving the MSCI Asia Pacific Index to a three-month high, after U.S. manufacturing data exceeded forecasts and European banks reported better-than- expected earnings. Shares of industrial and commodity companies posted the biggest gain of the 10 industry groups on the index. BHP Billiton Ltd., the world’s biggest mining company, rose 1.3 percent to A$40.84. Rio Tinto gained 2.2 percent to A$72.74. “We’ve seen a very strong rebound in prices because recent data seem to indicate the macro economic picture is brightening,” said Shen Zhaoming, an analyst at Changjiang Futures Co. Still, “ample domestic supplies and a slowdown in China’s economy will put a lid on how high prices can climb.” China Data China’s July purchasing managers’ index fell to the weakest in more than a year, as the government clamped down on property speculation and investment in polluting and energy-intensive factories. The country is the world’s biggest copper consumer. November-delivery copper on the Shanghai Futures Exchange gained 0.2 percent to 57,700 yuan ($8,518) a ton at the 11:30 a.m. local time trading break. Aluminum was little changed at 15,735 yuan a ton and zinc increased 0.7 percent to 16,875 yuan. Aluminum in London fell 0.5 percent to $2,207 a ton, zinc declined 2.2 percent to $2,075 a ton, and lead dropped 1.3 percent to $2,185 a ton. Nickel lost 1.7 percent to $21,575 a ton, and tin fell 0.6 percent to $19,760 a ton as of 12:02 p.m. in Shanghai. --Helen Sun. With assistance from Glenys Sim in Singapore. Editors: Richard Dobson, Ravil Shirodkar. To contact the reporter on this story: Helen Sun in Shanghai at hsun30@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: James Poole at jpoole4@bloomberg.net

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