Shanghai Futures Exchange copper slipped 0.2 percent to 51,490 yuan ($7,786) a tonne on Thursday amid signs that growth in China's property and power sectors, both major copper consumers, is tapering into the year-end. Short-term demand for copper in China is weakening, said broker Argonaut in a report. Argonaut noted that China's mid-size cable producers had seen a decline in new orders for December, while it expects construction industry, a major driver for copper, to contract into year-end. Power and property account for around half of China's copper demand. "We (hold) our view that a recovery in copper prices may be short-lived and thecopper price will remain under downward pressure."
Shfe aluminium was down 1.4 percent, after China's winter output cuts were set to be less severe than initially feared. China is the world's top producer of aluminium. High inventory has also weighed on Shfe aluminium. Shanghai stocks topped 700,000 tonnes this month, the highest in the nearly two-decade history of the contract and 28 percent above the 2013 cycle peak.
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