3 Minutes to Read (Updates prices, adds details and quotes) HANOI, Thailand, 30 June (Reuters) – Copper prices fell to their lowest quarterly increase since March 2020 on Wednesday, weighed down by a stronger dollar and efforts by key consumer China to cool a raging metals boom. As of 0620 GMT, three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange remained practically constant at $9,332.50 per tonne, up 6.2 percent for the quarter. In June, the metal fell 9%, marking the first monthly drop in three months. On the Shanghai Futures Exchange, the most actively traded August copper contract fell 0.3 percent to 68,050 yuan a tonne, marking the worst quarterly rise since March 2020, when China’s recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic helped metals prices. Following a record high in May, copper prices have fallen in recent weeks, owing to a worldwide economic recovery, increased investments in renewable energy and electric vehicles, and a tight supply picture. China has exerted some pressure, with the world’s second-largest economy releasing state reserves of copper, aluminum, and zinc as part of a vow to rein in recent commodity price increases. The dollar’s strength, fueled by expectations of faster-than-expected US policy tightening, has made greenback-priced metals more expensive and less tempting to holders of other currencies. “It will be all about how much demand from the rest of the globe can balance a slower China in the coming quarter. The success of ultimately bringing the virus under control and seeing supply chains return will determine the majority of this “Marex Spectron commodities dealer Anna Stablum said. “Aluminum has a potential to outperform since China’s environmental constraints will continue to limit supply, and the nickel market appears to be rather tight,” she noted. * According to Sumitomo Metal Mining, Japan’s largest nickel smelter, global demand for nickel used in batteries is predicted to climb 18 percent this year from 2020, boosted by robust sales of electric vehicles in China. Nickel dipped 0.5 percent to $18,270 per tonne on the London Metal Exchange, while lead increased 0.6 percent to $2,319.50 per tonne. ShFE lead increased by 3.4 percent to 15,915 yuan per tonne, while ShFE aluminium dropped by 0.6 percent to 18,740 yuan per tonne. Click or scroll down for the latest metals and other news. Mai Nguyen contributed reporting, and Aditya Soni and Sherry Jacob-Phillips edited the piece. Continue reading
