Copper prices edged up marginally in London on Tuesday, as market participants exercised caution ahead of the testimony of the US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) rose 0.1% to $9,922.50 per metric ton by 0343 GMT, while the most-traded August copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) eased 0.1% to 80,250 yuan ($11,034.72) a ton.
Markets participants awaited for clues on the path of interest rates from Powell’s scheduled testimony before Congress on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Copper prices are influenced by interest rates in the United States as they impact the US dollar and the global economic growth outlook, which can eventually hurt or boost demand of the metal.
Also supporting copper prices are signs of improving physical demand from top consumer China, evidenced by the discount to import copper into China flipping to a premium of $3 a ton on Friday.
However, the demand recovery is fragile because the premium returned to zero on Monday and is still far below the premium level above $100 a ton seen in December last year.
LME aluminium dipped 0.2% to $2,526.50 a ton, nickel declined 0.7% to $17,355, zinc eased 0.4% to $2,944.50, lead fell 0.4% to $2,223.50 while tin was almost unchanged at $34,220.
Copper steady as weak dollar counters sluggish demand in China
SHFE aluminium rose 0.3% to 20,445 yuan a ton, lead edged up 0.1% at 19,640 yuan, tin increased 0.1% to 278,010 yuan, while nickel dropped 0.9% to 136,970 yuan and zinc declined 0.8% to 24,400 yuan.
SHFE tin hit its highest since May 30 earlier in the session at 278,200 yuan a ton, after inventories in SHFE warehouses fell for the sixth straight week to 14,982 tons on Friday, the lowest since April 19.
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