Metals-China imports at nine-month high buoy copper prices
XLB•Other base metals move mixed
In other metals, aluminium CMAL3 eased 0.1% to $3,147 a ton, zinc CMZN3 rose 0.5% to $3,545, lead CMPB3 slipped 0.6% to $1,872, tin CMSN3 advanced 0.7% to $53,600 and nickel CMNI3 advanced 0.4% to $17,030.
Copper prices rise on China demand and low inventories
Copper prices rose on Monday as dwindling inventories and signs of strong demand in top consumer China triggered a flurry of buying.
Benchmark copper CMCU3 on the London Metal Exchange traded 0.6% higher at $13,615 a metric ton in official rings.
China import data and warehouse stocks support sentiment
Traders said import data showing China's imports of refined copper hitting a nine-month high in June boosted sentiment for the metal used in the power and construction industries. Part of the reason for higher imports is declining domestic supply due to smelter maintenance.
A gauge of China's appetite for importing metal, the Yangshan copper premium, jumped to a 14-month high of $100 a ton on July 17, data from consultancy Shanghai Metals Market showed. The premium has soared 133% this year.
At 79,909 tons, stocks of copper in warehouses monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange are at their lowest since August last year and down more than 80% since the middle of March.
Meanwhile, copper inventories in LME-approved warehouses have dropped 24% since end-May to 295,275 tons. Cancelled warrants, or metal earmarked for delivery, at 56% indicate another 166,025 tons is due to leave the LME system.
U.S. tariff expectations and backwardation keep market tight
Much of the copper that has left the LME system since February last year, when U.S. President Donald Trump first mooted import tariffs on the metal, has been shipped to the United States.
