Zinc fell from a one-year high in London and copper erased a gain as European equities slid amid concern about a revival of the region’s sovereign-debt crisis. The Stoxx 600 Europe Index of shares declined as much as 0.6 percent and the euro weakened against the dollar. Spanish and Italian bonds retreated amid signs of political turmoil in the countries. A gauge of euro-area manufacturing released Feb. 1 by Markit Economics was below the level of 50 separating contraction and expansion for an 18th month in January. “Obviously there are key risks, such as the potential for another sovereign crisis in Europe,� Nicholas Brooks, head of research and investment strategy at ETF Securities, said by phone today. Zinc for delivery in three months dropped 0.4 percent to $2,167 a metric ton on the London Metal Exchange by 7:25 a.m. New York time. Prices reached $2,190, the highest since Jan. 27, 2012. Copper for three-month delivery declined 0.2 percent to $8,271 a ton, while the metal for delivery in March fell 0.5 percent to $3.764 a pound on the Comex in New York. Prospects for a surplus of copper weighed on prices, along with a “growing sense of over-availability of copper in China,� David Wilson, an analyst at Citigroup Inc. in London, said by e-mail today. The country is the world’s biggest consumer of the metal. Production of copper will exceed demand by 90,000 tons this year, according to Standard Bank Plc. Stockpiles of the metal tracked by the LME are up 17 percent in 2013 and reached a 13- month high on Feb. 1, while orders to remove copper from warehouses have tumbled 37 percent. Copper inventories fell 0.5 percent to 374,200 tons, LME figures showed today. Canceled warrants, as the orders are known, dropped for a 10th session in 11 to 32,650 tons. Nickel, aluminum and lead slid in London. Tin rose. To contact the reporter on this story: Agnieszka Troszkiewicz in London at atroszkiewic@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Claudia Carpenter at ccarpenter2@bloomberg.net

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