Commodities » Industrial Metals

Industrial metals (copper, aluminium, nickel, etc.) daily review (July 27, 2010)

Contributed by Nirmal Bang

By Nirmal Bang

MARKET ROUNDUP

Industrial Metals futures finished Monday with healthy gains, after rallying to a 10-week peak on higher-than-expected U.S. home sales, with prices also supported by euro strength and climbing U.S. share prices.

IN FOCUS

- Western world unwrought aluminium stocks fell to 1.192 million tonnes in June from a revised 1.306 million tonnes in May, industry data showed on Monday.

- World aluminum inventories in June fell 5.8%, or 139,000 metric tons, to 2.255 million metric tons, from 2.394 million tons in May, according to figures released Monday by the International Aluminum Institute.

- The government has ordered Zijin Mining Group Co Ltd to restrict production after discharges from its copper mine polluted a river and reservoir in Fujian province, the official China Securities Journal reported on Tuesday, citing unnamed sources.

- Russian steelmaker OAO Severstal Monday reported a 20% rise in its second quarter crude steel production from the same period a year ago.

- South Africa's logistics group Transnet has shut down its iron ore rail line after a train carrying ore was derailed, the company said on Saturday, threatening to slow exports of the raw material.

- Zambia's largest copper miner by output, Konkola Copper Mines, is planning to lay off at least 170 miners from its Nchanga unit on the Copperbelt in a bid to cut production costs, a union official told Dow Jones Newswires Monday

FUNDAMENTAL OUTLOOK

Industrial metals are trading sideways to down on LME. We may see some profit taking in this counter today. We expect prices of industrial metals to trade down on the back of some concerns over US economy recovery. Selling on rise should be the investor's strategy today.