Copper Rises on Expectations of Improved Manufacturing Demand
2002-03-06 09:23 (New York)
New York, March 6 (Bloomberg) -- Copper rose to a three-week
high on expectations that an industry report today will add to
evidence of an economic recovery in the U.S., boosting demand for
wire and pipes.
Analysts expect that the Commerce Department will say that
orders placed with U.S. manufacturers rose in January for a second
month. Prices have rallied 25 percent from a 14-year low in
November as evidence mounts that the U.S. is emerging from its
first recession in a decade.
``The expectation of a good number is driving the copper
market right now,'' said Jim Steel, a director of commodity
research at Refco Inc. in New York.
Copper for May delivery rose as much as 1.1 cents, or 1.5
percent, to 75.15 cents a pound on the Comex division of the New
York Mercantile Exchange, the highest price for a most-active
contract since Feb. 14. Prices still were 11 percent lower than a
year ago.
In London, copper for delivery in three months rose as much
as $27, or 1.7 percent, to $1,634 a metric ton (74.12 cents a
pound) on the London Metal Exchange.
Factory orders probably increased by 1.5 percent, to $327.1
billion, in January after rising 1.2 percent in December,
according to the median of 58 forecasts in a Bloomberg News survey
before the government report, scheduled for release at
10 a.m. Washington time.
--Claudia Carpenter in the New York newsroom (212) 318-2346 or at
ccarpenter2@bloomberg.net with reporting by Monee Fields-White in
Washington. Editor: Banker. |
