Shanghai, LME copper drift

Shanghai copper tracked London futures lower, and activity over the next two weeks was expected to be muted ahead a series of US data this week and a meeting by the Federal Reserve later this month.
Investors were unlikely to take on big positions until the meeting, but a batch of US data this week including construction spending, revised productivity and non-farm payrolls, could hint at the extent of any rate cut.
"I don't think much will happen until the Fed meeting. The focus will be on what they do on September 18, and until then, metals markets will drift along," MF Global analyst Edward Emir said. "I feel they will cut rates, initially by 25 basis points, as they are getting friendly inflation data. If they do cut the rate, the dollar will take a beating and be supportive of metals."
A fall in the value of the greenback makes dollar-denominated assets like base metals cheaper for holders of other currencies. Shanghai's most active November copper contract was 0.3 percent or 210 yuan lower at 64,700 yuan ($8,577) a tonne. Copper for delivery in three months on the London Metal Exchange was down $15 at $7,370 a tonne, after losing $75 on Monday.
Technically, the copper market was expected to range around $7,700, Daryl Guppy of Guppytraders.com said. "Expect consolidation around the $7,700 level," Guppy said, noting that the downtrend in copper was weakening. He added: "But this does not suggest the rally has a high probability of developing into a new upturned."
LME aluminium rose $8 to $2,483, while the most active Shanghai December contract was 30 yuan down at 19,380. LME stocks of the metal jumped 12,900 tonnes on Monday to 839,625, there highest since August 2004. "A parcel of 13,100 tonnes of t-bars was delivered into Liverpool warehouses in what seems to be a rent deal conveniently located at the European periphery to keep premiums intact," brokerage Trilled Metals said in a report.
Three-month zinc was at $3,020, down $15 from Monday. Lead was unchanged, also at $3,020. In company news, Nyrstar, the zinc-smelting giant formed by Belgium's Umicore and Australia's Zinifex, said it expected further industry consolidation. Nyrstar's owners plan to float the company on the stock market this year, potentially as early as end of October.