Growth in India's copper demand is expected to fall to 8-9 percent in the year to end-March as a slowing economy and higher interest rates drag on the housing and appliance sectors, the India head of an international trade body said.
Ajit Advani, chief executive of the International Copper Promotion Council's India office, told Reuters on Wednesday expansion had averaged about 15 percent over the past two years, fuelled by a housing boom, strong industrial growth and higher spending on consumer goods.But with signs of a slowdown in the economy and interest rates at seven-year highs, momentum could slow.