Copper Climbs for a 3rd Day on Signs Demand Outpaces Supplies
2005-03-29 08:37 (New York)
By Claudia Carpenter
March 29 (Bloomberg) -- Copper prices in New York rose for the
third straight session as a drop in metal stockpiles renewed
speculation that demand is outpacing production.
Inventory at warehouses approved by the London Metal Exchange
fell for a 12th straight session to near a 16-year low, while
stockpiles monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange dropped 42
percent last week. Copper fell 3.6 percent last week amid concern
rising interest rates would slow consumption.
``The fundamentals are still solid,'' said Michael Purdy, a
trader at ABN Amro in New York. ``Asia's been very busy the last
couple of days.''
Copper futures for May delivery rose 2.05 cents, or 1.4
percent, to $1.475 a pound at 8:36 a.m. on the Comex division of
the New York Mercantile Exchange. A futures contract is an
obligation to buy or sell a commodity at a set price by a specific
date.
LME inventory was 44,600 tons, down 525 tons from March 24 and
the lowest since Jan. 26. Stockpiles on Jan. 21 were 43,475 tons,
the lowest since May 1988.
``Low global copper inventories will force prices higher''
through the second quarter, Barclays Capital said in a daily metals
report.
On the LME, copper for delivery in three months rose $52, or
1.6 percent to $3,249 a metric ton ($1.4735 a pound).
--Editor: McKiernan |
