Copper Climbs, Heading for Biggest Weekly Gain Since Late 2003
2005-05-27 08:36 (New York)
By Claudia Carpenter
May 27 (Bloomberg) -- Copper prices in New York rose, heading
for the biggest weekly gain since December 2003, amid speculation
that a drop in global inventory may signal growing demand for the
metal.
Supplies at warehouses monitored by the London Metal Exchange
in 28 cities in Asia, Europe and the U.S. plunged 26 percent since
May 11, LME figures show. Copper prices have climbed 5.7 percent
this week amid signs that mining companies can't keep up with
growing industrial demand. Protests forced BHP Billiton Ltd. to
shut its Tintaya copper mine in Peru on May 24.
``People really want'' copper, said Michael Giblin, a partner
at Bruckman Trading Corp. in New York.
Copper futures for July delivery rose 0.45 cent, or 0.3
percent, to $1.454 a pound at 8:27 a.m. on the Comex division of
the New York Mercantile Exchange. A close at the price would mark
the biggest weekly advance since Dec. 5, 2003.
Trading will end at 12:05 p.m. today, instead of the normal
closing at 1 p.m., and the exchange will be closed May 30 for the
Memorial Day holiday.
A futures contract is an obligation to buy or sell a commodity
at a set price at a specific date.
--Editor: McKiernan |
