Copper, industrial metals fall as stronger dollar weighs

Copper drifted down on Wednesday, weighed by gains in the US dollar, which also pressured other industrial metals.

Benchmark three-month copper CMCU3 on the London Metal Exchange was down 0.66% at $14,651 a metric ton by 0300 GMT. The most-traded copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange SCFcv1 edged 0.23% lower to 110,960 yuan ($16,550.57) a ton.

The US dollar rose in choppy trading overnight, with volatile oil prices and geopolitical uncertainty buffeting traders.

A more expensive dollar can weigh on dollar-denominated commodities such as copper by making them more expensive for buyers using other currencies.

Elsewhere, SHFE nickel SNIcv1 was up 1.16%. Prices rose on the LME late Tuesday after Indonesian nickel hub PT Indonesia Morowali Industrial Park (IMIP) said a water shortage forced some smelters to reduce nickel pig iron production.

Among LME metals, aluminium CMAL3 lost 0.63%, zinc CMZN3 lost 0.68%, lead CMPB3 lost 0.52%, nickel CMNI3 lost 0.43% and tin CMSN3 lost 0.38%.

Among SHFE metals, aluminium SAFcv1 dipped 0.14%, zinc SZNcv1 lost 0.47%, lead SPBcv1 lost 0.4%, and tin SSNcv1 ticked 0.11% higher.

($1 = 6.7043 Chinese yuan renminbi)

That dampened continued support from strong buying interest for the red metal in China. The Yangshan premium SMM-SUYP-CN - a gauge of China's interest in imported copper - fell to $117 a ton on Tuesday, but was still 62.5% higher than at the start of the month.

Chinese demand had been boosted by buying ahead of smelter shutdowns for the country's public holidays. The country's upcoming holidays are on September 25 to 27 and from October 1 to 7.