The red metal used to manufacture conductor wires is trading above $6,200 a metric ton on the London Metal Exchange (LME). In London copper is trading for $6,182 metric ton while in Asian trade copper was trading for RMB49,600 ($6,978/mt).
The base metal markets have cheered the US – China trade phase one deal which allays fears of slowdown in Chinese economic growth. The worlds second largest economy recorded higher than expected retail sales and industrial output for November against median forecasts suggesting that Sino – US trade war effects could be detenting. Political risks from Brexit have subsided sending the sterling to high not seen in 7 months after Boris Johnson bagged a majority win and will attempt to exit the European Union on 31 January 2020 with a 10-11 month time frame to conclude a free trade agreement.
Copper on the other hand has been supported by social unrest in Chile giving rising political violence that has impacted production in BHP unit Antophagasta and state owned Coldelco.
Warehouse inventory levels have ebbed lower to 167,000 metric tons in London while tracking declines to 117,345 metric tons on the Shanghai Futures Exchange – SFE. These declines have translated in narrowing spreads to $6 per metric ton in London trading.
Mining News
*FQM MINING: Zambia’s Mining Investment Vehicle ZCCM-IH is an arbitration process with First Quantum Mining (FQM) over a funds transfer to Kansanshi’s parent. This will add the inventory of legal disputes to two the first being the Vedanata’s Konkola Copper Mine liquidation battle which is still in the courts of law.
*NEVADA COPPER: Nevada copper corporation will start production at its pumpkin hollow mine in western US, a new mining project in the decades.
*OTHER BASE METALS: Zinc firmed1.7% to $2,291/mt while Aluminum ebbed 0.7% to $1,778/mt as Tin shaved a third of a percentage point to $17,175/mt.
The Red Metal Analyst
