Investing.com - Copper futures fell sharply on Monday, as comments made over the weekend by Republican House Speaker John Boehner stoked fears that the political deadlock in Washington will not be resolved by October 17, the date which the Treasury Department has estimated the U.S. could risk an unprecedented default.
On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, copper futures for December delivery traded at USD3.271 a pound during European morning trade, down 0.9%.
Copper prices fell by as much as 1.1% earlier in the day to hit a session low of USD3.264 a pound. The December contract settled 1% higher at USD3.301 a pound on Friday.
Copper prices were likely to find support at USD3.249 a pound, the low from October 2 and resistance at USD3.324 a pound, the high from October 3.
Investors continued to monitor negotiations over a U.S. budget impasse that has kept the federal government shut down since October 1.
Markets were also mulling over how the political deadlock in Washington will impact on negotiations to raise the U.S. debt ceiling, which the U.S. Treasury Department has estimated will be reached by October 17.
Republican House Speaker John Boehner said Sunday the House will not support bills to fully reopen the government or increase the U.S. debt ceiling unless Democrats agree to talks about spending cuts.
Meanwhile, concerns over the global economic outlook also weighed on the industrial metal.
The World Bank lowered its outlook on Chinese GDP growth to 7.5%, down from 8.3% and below the 7.5% the International Monetary Fund previously forecast. China’s 2014 GDP is forecast at 7.7% by the World Bank, down from a prior estimate of 8%.
The Asian nation is the world’s largest copper consumer, accounting for almost 40% of world consumption last year.
Copper is sensitive to the economic growth outlook because of its widespread uses across industries.
Elsewhere on the Comex, gold for December delivery fell 0.8% to trade at USD1,309.70 a troy ounce, while silver for December delivery dropped 1.3% to trade at USD21.61 a troy ounce.
Delays in U.S. economic data releases fuelled expectations that the Federal Reserve will hold off on any move to scale back its stimulus program.
Friday's highly-anticipated non-farm payrolls report for September was postponed due to the U.S. government shutdown, and no new date was given for the release of the data.
