Commodities » Industrial Metals

Industrial metals (copper, aluminium, nickel, etc.) daily review (September 08, 2010)

Contributed by Nirmal Bang

By Nirmal Bang

MARKET ROUNDUP

Industrial metals prices backed away from fourmonth highs yesterday, as investors reduced holdings of riskier assets amid renewed concerns about the European banking sector and signs of slowing growth in the euro zone.

IN FOCUS

- Europe's demand for copper will rise by some 3 percent in the second half versus the first, driven by improved end-use consumption, rather than restocking, Swedish copper fabricator Elektrokoppar said on Tuesday.

- China's top nickel producer, Jinchuan Group Ltd, wants to buy overseas nickel and copper assets to boost its production of the two metals by about half, Jinchuan president Wang Haizhou was quoted as saying on Wednesday.

- Nickel demand from makers of stainless steel is expected to be stable this year and in the longer term, the chief executive of Acerinox, the world's largest stainless steel maker, told Reuters on Tuesday.

- At least one deal on term premiums for primary aluminium shipments to Japan for October-December was agreed at $118 per tonne, down about 1.7 percent from $120 in the third quarter, a trader said on Wednesday.

- China's stockpiling arm, State Reserve Bureau, may sell spot copper to major trading houses in local market as it looks to take profit after having built massive long-term stockpile of red metal at lower prices (since breakout of global financial crisis early 2009), says Shanghai-based trader.

FUNDAMENTAL OUTLOOK

Industrial metals prices are trading little changed on international bourses. We expect industrial metals prices to be a victim of profit-taking during the day after a series of continuous upward rally in the previous trading sessions.