Copper May Extend Record Run to $10,000 as RecoverCopper surged to records in Londonand New York as manufacturing improved from China to the U.S.,bolstering the demand outlook for the metal used in constructionand electrical applications.
Copper for three-month delivery on the London MetalExchange advanced for a sixth day, gaining as much as 0.4percent to $9,984.75 a metric ton, surpassing the previous peakof $9,968 reached yesterday. It traded at $9,955 a ton at 2:52p.m. in Singapore. March-delivery futures on the Comex in NewYork also climbed to an all-time high of $4.5595 a pound.
“The market likes to test big, round numbers, and we’relooking increasingly at $10,000 pretty soon,” said Yingxi Yu, aSingapore-based analyst at Barclays Capital. “Strongmacroeconomic data have provided the lift to market sentimentneeded for the current rally.”
Manufacturing in the U.S. unexpectedly accelerated inJanuary at the fastest pace in more than six years; Europeanmanufacturing grew at the quickest pace in nine months; and U.K.production increased at a record pace in January, data yesterdayshowed.
In China, a reading of 52.9 for a purchasing managers’index released by the logistics federation yesterday exceededthe 50 level dividing expansion and contraction, while Indianmanufacturing growth accelerated in January, separate reportsshowed.
“With the Chinese out, liquidity is thin and volatilitywill increase,” said Yu. China’s financial markets are closedfrom today through Feb. 8 for the Lunar New Year holiday.
Declining Stockpiles
Copper, often taken as a gauge of economic gauge, surged 30percent last year as the global economy recovered and investmentdemand increased, driving stockpiles lower for the first timesince 2004. Commodity assets under management rose to a record$376 billion last year, boosted by demand from large investors, Barclays Capital said on Jan. 27.
Aluminum in London rose 0.2 percent to $2,557 a ton, leadgained 0.3 percent to $2,547 a ton, while zinc was littlechanged at $2,475 a ton. Nickel increased as much as 0.5 percentto $28,130 a ton, and tin climbed 0.2 percent to $30,200 a tonafter reaching a record $30,400 a ton yesterday.
To contact the reporter on this story:Glenys Sim in Singapore atgsim4@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Matthew Oakley atmoakley@bloomberg.net