Metals-Copper on track for first weekly dip since June on US tariff doubts
XLB•Other LME metals also move lower
The rest of the LME complex was in the red as rising borrowing costs and inflationary fears roiled markets. Aluminium CMAL3 fell 1.4% to $3,249 a ton, zinc CMZN3 slipped 0.6% to $3,870 and lead CMPB3 lost 0.3% to $1,895.
Nickel CMNI3 shed 1.5% to $16,410, touching a two-month low, while tin CMSN3 fell 0.7% to $53,950, hitting its weakest since July 28.
Copper steadies after sharp Thursday drop
Sept. 11 (Reuters) - Copper prices were headed for their first weekly drop since June, even as they steadied on Friday following a steep fall in the previous session after Reuters reported that the White House had not made a decision on imposing tariffs on the metal.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange CMCU3 was little changed at $14,230 a metric ton in official open outcry activity. It sank 3.6% on Thursday after hitting a record high of $14,875 and is on course to end the week down 1.6%, which would end its 10-week winning streak.
Inventories remain tight even as prices pull back
"The market has been caught long," Alastair Munro, senior base metals strategist at Marex, said over email.
"Copper stocks remain tight geographically and moving significant amounts of money should take some time," he said. "So we see the potential for further tightness in the months ahead but in the here and now it's all about risk management."
Sucden Financial said heavy volumes on Thursday's decline showed "meaningful risk reduction" but concurred that underlying fundamental tightness should limit any selloff.
Available LME copper stocks MCUSTX-TOTAL were steady at 117,600 tons, but in top metals consumer China, Shanghai Futures Exchange inventories CU-STX-SGH fell for another week, plunging 13% to 54,780 tons, their lowest since January 2024.
