BLBG:WTI Crude Fluctuates as Goldman Raises Brent Forecasts on Supply
Copper fell in London as investors awaited cues to the Federal Reserve’s stance on maintaining bond purchases amid concern about the outlook for demand in China, the biggest consumer of the metal.
Minutes of July’s meeting of Fed policy-makers due Aug. 21 may give details about deliberations on when to curb debt-buying of $85 billion a month. The purchases will slow starting next month, according to 65 percent of economists surveyed by Bloomberg. Copper inventories tracked by the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose from an 11-month low last week.
“Tapering is still in the air, and real Chinese end use of copper doesn’t seem to be that strong,” David Wilson, a London-based analyst at Citigroup Inc., said by e-mail.
Copper for delivery in three months declined 0.7 percent to $7,346 a metric ton by 10:31 a.m. on the London Metal Exchange. Prices reached a 10-week high at $7,420 on Aug. 16. Copper for delivery in December fell 0.5 percent to $3.35 a pound on the Comex in New York.
Money managers held a net-long position, or bet on higher copper prices, of 7,041 Comex futures and options contracts as of Aug. 13, according to U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission data. They had been wagering on lower prices for 24 consecutive weeks, the longest bearish stretch since July 2009. Copper rose 1.7 percent last week in London trading.
“The market was just very short,” Wilson said. Buying of metal to close out bearish bets lifted prices, helped by figures showing exports from China rose in July, he said.
Copper stockpiles monitored by the LME fell for a 24th session to 577,450 tons, daily exchange data showed. The streak of declines is the longest since Feb. 10, 2012, according to figures compiled by Bloomberg. Orders to remove copper from warehouses dropped 2.1 percent to 303,975 tons.
Aluminum for delivery in three months rose 0.2 percent to $1,948 a ton in London. United Co. Rusal, the world’s largest producer of the lightweight metal, said today it will further reduce output this year after reporting a second-quarter loss. Rusal plans to shutter 357,000 tons of uneconomic capacity in 2013, up from a March estimate of 300,000 tons.
Zinc, nickel and tin fell on the LME. Lead gained.
To contact the reporter on this story: Maria Kolesnikova in London at mkolesnikova@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Claudia Carpenter at ccarpenter2@bloomberg.net
