RTRS:METALS-Copper down on China factory slowdown, euro zone woes
* Copper down 0.6 pct on LME; down 0.3 pct on ShFE
* China's Oct PMI slowest since Feb. 2009.
* Dlr boosted by Japan selling yen; euro zone worries weigh
* U.S. ISM Manufacturing PMI,Oct;1400 GMT
(Updates prices, adds quotes, details)
By Carrie Ho
SHANGHAI, Nov 1 (Reuters) - London copper slipped on Tuesday
on a stronger dollar and an unexpected slowdown in China's
factory activity, with doubts over last week's euro zone bailout
plan further dampening sentiment.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange fell
0.6 percent to $7,949 a tonne by 0344 GMT, after losing 2.3
percent in the previous session.
The most-active January copper contract on the Shanghai
Futures Exchange SCFc3 dropped 0.3 percent to 58,040 yuan
($9,133.11) per tonne, after falling 1.7 percent on Monday.
"The commodity and equity markets rose temporarily after the
media reported President Hu Jintao's speech about being
confident in the euro zone's ability to handle the crisis," said
CIFCO Futures analyst Zhou Jie.
"After digesting the news, everyone is back to being more
realistic. Nothing has changed today. There is still more
negative than positive news and base metals are still under
pressure," he added.
Hu on Monday said China believed Europe could overcome its
economic problems, but he did not say whether Beijing would play
any major role in helping to solve the euro zone's debt crisis.
China's factory activity in October, which was its slowest
since February 2009, added to the gloom, with the official
purchasing managers' index (PMI) showing an unexpected drop,
reminding investors of the risks to the world's No. 2 economy
from a sagging global backdrop.
"Copper prices won't slip to the previous lows of $6,300
anymore but we need some real good news to lift it much higher,
such as some monetary loosening in China," said Dongzheng
Futures trader Du Xiaohua.
The strengthening dollar is also making commodities priced
in the greenback more expensive, and putting off investors. The
U.S. currency rose on Monday after Japan sold the yen for the
second time in less than three months.
Adding to worries about companies' exposure to the euro zone
crisis, futures brokerage MF Global Holdings Ltd filed
for bankruptcy protection after bad bets on euro zone debt.
Chinese gold and copper miner Zijin Mining Group Co Ltd
said on Monday that it has delayed the
startup of its 200,000-tonne-per-year copper smelter.
Base metals prices at 0344 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct Move YTD pct chg
LME Cu 7949.00 -51.00 -0.64 -17.20
SHFE CU FUT JAN2 58040 -190 -0.33 -19.22
LME Alum 2206.00 -14.00 -0.63 -10.69
SHFE AL FUT JAN2 16360 -20 -0.12 -2.85
HG COPPER DEC1 360.40 -2.80 -0.77 -18.82
LME Zinc 1950.00 -50.00 -2.50 -20.54
SHFE ZN FUT JAN2 15360 25 +0.16 -21.13
LME Nickel 19601.00 26.00 +0.13 -20.80
LME Lead 2042.00 -40.00 -1.92 -19.92
SHFE PB FUT 15320 -25 -0.16 -16.51
LME Tin 21900.00 -100.00 -0.45 -18.59
LME/Shanghai arb 1041
Shanghai and COMEX contracts show most active months
^ LME 3-m copper in yuan, including 17 pct VAT, minus SHFE
third month
