China's Economy Grew More Than ForecastCopper Rises in London; China's Economy Grew More Than Forecast
July 18 (Bloomberg) -- Copper rose in London as the economy of China, the world's largest consumer of the metal, grew at the fastest pace in more than a decade.
China's economy expanded 11.3 percent in the second quarter, exceeding the 10.4 percent median forecast by 30 economists surveyed by Bloomberg News. The growth rate may signal increased appetite for copper, Kevin Norrish, a London- based analyst at Barclays Capital, said today by phone.
``All the data signal usage of copper in China is pretty strong,'' Norrish said. ``We've seen inventory drawdowns of copper both in metal and concentrate.''
Copper for delivery in three months gained $180, or 2.3 percent, to $7,920 a metric ton as of 10:35 a.m. on the London Metal Exchange, paring its largest daily decline in a month yesterday. Copper has gained 80 percent this year and climbed to a record $8,800 a ton on May 11.
Stockpiles of the metal tracked by the LME dropped 1,575 tons, or 1.7 percent, to 92,275 tons, the exchange said today in a daily report, equal to less than three days of global consumption.
Rising demand from China and tightening stockpiles will prevent copper dropping much below $8,000 a ton, Norrish said. It's ``a pretty good number,'' he said.
China needs copper as its booming economy stokes demand for metals used in the construction of bridges, factories, power grids and machines. Demand for the metal will rise 6.8 percent this year to 3.95 million tons, after 5.7 percent growth last year, according to China Minmetals Co., the country's biggest metals trader.
Production Exceeds Demand
Copper production exceeded demand in April by 16,000 tons, the International Copper Study Group said today in a report. China's usage of copper dropped 5 percent in the first four months of the year, the Lisbon-based group said. Its data don't include inventory at China's State Reserve Bureau, which doesn't publicize its purchases or sales.
Output may decline amid concern about labor disputes from North America to Chile. Workers at Teck Cominco Ltd.'s Highland Valley copper mine in Canada have threatened to stop work from Oct. 1 and miners at Escondida in Chile, the world's largest copper mine, may strike next month.
Among other LME metals, aluminum gained $30 to $2,600 a ton and zinc added $60 to $3,350. Nickel dropped $100 to $25,650, lead fell $9 to $1,081 and tin was $50 lower at $8,300.