Copper Falls on Weak Demand
February 23 2017 - 7:09AM
Dow Jones News
By Katherine Dunn
LONDON--Copper prices fell on Thursday as weak demand outweighed
lingering supply concerns over mine closures in Chile and
Indonesia.
The three-month London Metal Exchange copper price was down
0.90% at $5,973 per metric ton in midmorning trade on Thursday.
"Supply side concerns are still supporting prices, but physical
buying is quiet," said Robin Bhar, an analyst at Société
Générale.
In Chile, the union strike at the Escondida mine, the world's
largest copper mine, is about to enter its third consecutive week.
After 30 days workers can return individually back to work. The
mine is majority-owned by BHP Billiton Ltd.
There are still no signs of agreement between the workers and
management, said Commerzbank in a note. The bank estimated that the
two weeks of striking had taken 41,000 tons of copper out of the
supply chain.
A dispute over an export license for Freeport-McMoRan Inc.'s
Grasberg mine in Indonesia has also stifled production.
However, those concerns have been dampened by weak demand and
ample stockpiles, noted Mr. Bhar. Analysts and traders are now
waiting to see how long the strike at the Escondida mine lasts.
Nickel has also been affected by concerns about future supply,
after the government of the Philippines said it would close 23
mines and suspend another five.
On Thursday, the technical working group of the country's Mining
Industry Coordinating Council (MICC), said it would launch a
program in response to complaints by the mining industry about the
suspensions.
All the base metals were lower. Nickel was down 0.84% at $10,640
per metric ton, aluminum was down 0.74% at $1,879 per ton, lead was
down 0.75% at $2,263.50 per ton, zinc was down 1.12% at $2,826 per
ton, and tin was down 0.75% at $19,150 per ton.
Cris Larano contributed to this article.
Write to Katherine Dunn at Katherine.Dunn@wsj.com
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
February 23, 2017 06:54 ET (11:54 GMT)
Copyright (c) 2017 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.
BHP (ASX:BHP)
Historical Stock Chart
From Mar 2024 to Apr 2024
BHP (ASX:BHP)
Historical Stock Chart
From Apr 2023 to Apr 2024
