SINGAPORE: London copper lost more ground on Wednesday, with prices dropping to their lowest since late November as concerns over a slower pace of economic recovery in top consumer China pressured the market.

Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was down 0.2% at $8,107 as of 0649 GMT, after dropping to its lowest since Nov. 30 at $8,088.50 a tonne earlier in the session. The most-traded copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange lost 0.8% to 64,300 yuan ($9,302.53) a tonne.

“Weaker than expected industrial production and steady export growth pointed to sluggish domestic demand,” ANZ said in a note, referring to China’s data.

“This has prompted calls for more policy stimulus measures as the country’s economic recovery wanes.”

China’s April industrial output and retail sales growth undershot forecasts, the latest in a run of weak figures, with property investment and sales weakening and the metals-intensive manufacturing sector shrinking in April.

China’s offshore yuan weakened past 7 per dollar on Wednesday for the first time in five months amid growing signs that the country’s post-COVID recovery is loosing steam.

Copper prices rebound with China liquidity injection

The country’s new home prices rose for the fourth straight month in April but at a slower pace, official data showed on Wednesday, as government efforts to stabilise the sector lifted sentiment after the country’s abrupt exit from COVID-19 curbs late last year.

Copper reached a seven-month high of $9,550.50 a tonne in January on hopes that Chinese demand would rebound after the country lifted its COVID restrictions.

In other metals, LME aluminium was up 0.3% at $2,265.50 a tonne and zinc rose 0.2% to $2,498 a tonne.

Demand for aluminium has slumped in Europe and top consumer China in recent weeks amid a slowing global economy, raising the risk of further downside in prices.