RE:China March copper imports rise 46% MELBOURNE, April 13 (Reuters) - London copper was flat on Monday after surprisingly weak China trade data was offset by a jump in March copper imports, which were plumped up by bookings made a month earlier when imports were cheaper.
China's export growth contracted 15 percent in March from a year earlier in a surprise drop that is set to exacerbate concerns about the slackening Chinese economy.
Markets will now be focused on gauges of China's industrial production and economic growth this week, given solid copper imports couldn't be seen necessarily as a reflection of strong demand, analyst Dominic Schnider of UBS in Hong Kong said.
"You could argue that the rise in imports is because of a little bit of a lag (on bookings) from the low prices... but I would definitely wait until April to make any broader judgment."
China's imports of copper rose 46.4 percent from a month earlier to 410,000 tonnes in March.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange traded flat at $6,039 a tonne by 0210 GMT, after firming in the previous session when it hit its highest in nearly two weeks at $6,106.50 a tonne.
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RE:2 Hours Ago..,Reuters .., April 13,2015
China's imports of copper rose 46.4 percent in March from a month earlier to 410,000 tonnes.
"You could argue that the rise in imports is because of a little bit of a lag (on bookings) from the low prices ... but I would definitely wait until April to make any broader judgment," said analyst Dominic Schnider at UBS.
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RE: Jan 19, 2015 2:53am EST
Related: Basic Materials
UPDATE 1-China grid investment to boost copper consumption
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