By Anna Stablum Sept. 17 (Bloomberg) -- Copper rose in London to the highest price in almost five months as inventories of metal shrank for a 30th week in a row and the dollar slumped. Stockpiles of copper tracked by the London Metal Exchange dropped to the lowest level in more than 10 months. Orders to draw metal from inventories posted the biggest weekly jump in four weeks. The U.S. Dollar Index, a six-currency gauge of the greenback’s strength, fell as much as 0.5 percent, making dollar-priced metals cheaper in terms of other monies. “The market is increasingly aware of fundamental tightness in copper,” said Tom Kendall, an analyst at Credit Suisse Group AG in London. “Stocks keep being drawn down.” Copper for delivery in three months rose $102, or 1.3 percent, to $7,802 a metric ton at 10:18 a.m. on the LME. The contract touched $7,810, the highest price since April 26, and is up 4.2 percent this week, on course for the biggest weekly advance since July. Among other main LME metals, tin gained for a ninth day in a row. Supply deficits probably will “quickly deplete” stocks over the coming year, Goldman Sachs Group Inc. analysts including Jeffrey Currie said in a report, putting copper among raw materials they expect “to break out to the upside in coming months.” U.S. and Chinese government policies aimed at spurring growth will combine with “exceptionally high” demand in emerging markets, the bank said. Smaller Inventories Copper for delivery in December gained 1.6 percent to $3.5485 a pound on the Comex in New York. LME copper stockpiles fell for a third day to 384,200 tons, the lowest level since Nov. 5, daily exchange figures show. They dropped 1.8 percent this week, the most since the week ended July 16. Orders to draw copper from LME inventories, or canceled warrants, fell 4.6 percent to 29,775 tons. That pared this week’s surge to 43 percent, the biggest since the week ended Aug. 20. Copper stockpiles monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange gained by 200 tons to 98,225 tons this week, the bourse said today. Copper may rise next week on speculation that Federal Reserve actions will help to maintain demand in the U.S., the world’s second-biggest consumer of the metal after China. Eight of 15 analysts, investors and traders surveyed by Bloomberg, or 53 percent, said the metal will gain next week. Peruvian Miners “Potential strikes in Peru” may aid prices, Credit Suisse’s Kendall said. Miners in the country, the second-largest copper producer after Chile, may vote this week to start a national strike to press for better pensions and a greater share of profits, a union leader said Sept. 14. Protesters in Peru attempted to seize Xstrata Plc’s Tintaya copper mine yesterday after clashes with police left two dead. Tin for three-month delivery on the LME gained 1.1 percent to $23,750 a ton after touching $23,800, the highest intraday price since July 16, 2008. The metal is this year’s best LME performer, adding 40 percent, compared with the 27 percent advance by closest rival nickel. Tin, which touched a record $25,500 a ton in May 2008, has been bolstered by disruptions to production in Congo and Indonesia. LME stockpiles fell for a fourth week to 13,625 tons, taking this year’s decline to 49 percent. One party held between 40 percent and 49 percent of the inventory as of Sept. 14, according to the LME. Nickel rose 1.1 percent to $23,495 a ton after reaching $23,570, the highest intraday price since May 10. The market moved into a so-called backwardation for the first time in more than a year on Sept. 14 as immediate-delivery nickel traded at a premium to three-month metal. Cash nickel traded at a premium of $7 a ton to the three- month contract yesterday, widening from $5 in the prior session, according to the latest LME figures. Cash metal was at a discount of $6 on Sept. 13. Aluminum advanced 2.1 percent to $2,210 a ton, lead climbed 2 percent to $2,245 a ton and zinc jumped 2.4 percent to $2,198.75 a ton. To contact the reporter on the story: Anna Stablum in London at astablum@bloomberg.net.

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