LME Base metals mostly fall, copper slides for third day

LONDON (Scrap Monster) : LME base metals mostly fell, with copper declining for the third day mainly influenced by the disappointing Chinese industrial production figures and fears of Fed Reserve cutting back the stimulus program.

The LME copper for delivery in 3 months fell nearly 1.1% to $7,151.25 per metric ton. The metal had lost more than a percent during the previous week as well. The Comex copper futures for delivery in July also declined 1.1% to $3.2325 per pound.

The primary reason for the sharp fall in copper price is attributed to the below-than-estimate data that came out of China- the largest consumer of the red metal. The Chinese value added industrial production rose 9.2% year-on-year, slowing from April’s 9.3%.Industrial production increased only 0.62% in May compared to 0.87 in April. The export gains plunged to a 10-month low and the imports were down. The weak data aroused fears of demand concern, triggering a sharp sell-off in all base metals across the board.

In addition, the better US jobs data showing that the world’s largest economy added 175,000 new jobs in May, surpassing the median estimates of 165,000 also sparked fears that the US Fed may reduce bond purchases, curtailing on the stimulus program.

Other base metals such as aluminum, zinc, lead, nickel and tin also declined on the LME.