Copper Jumps to 1-Week High on Speculation China Demand to Rise
2009-02-04 14:47:55.250 GMT
By Millie Munshi
Feb. 4 (Bloomberg) -- Copper rose in New York to the highest price in a week on speculation that demand will gain in China, the world’s biggest metals consumer.
China’s Purchasing Manager’s Index, a manufacturing gauge, rose in January from the previous month, the China Federation of Logistics and Purchasing said today. Copper prices have more than doubled since 2002 as demand surged in China, the world’s fastest-growing major economy.
“Sentiment has been supported by the release of Chinese PMI data for January,” analysts at Barclays Capital in London said today in a report. The gain in the index is “representing a solid month-on-month improvement.”
Copper futures for March delivery gained 1.9 cents, or
1.2 percent, to $1.541 a pound at 9:44 a.m. on the New York Mercantile Exchange’s Comex division. Earlier, the metal touched $1.558, the highest for the most-active contract since Jan. 27.
The Chinese manufacturing index rose to 45.3 in January from 41.2 in December and a record 38.8 in November, the group said. A reading below 50 indicates a contraction.
“The improvement versus the previous two months at least offers a sign of some bottoming out,” Barclays said.
On the London Metal Exchange, copper for delivery in three months increased $39, or 1.2 percent, to $3,412 a metric ton
($1.55 a pound). The price reached a record $8,940 on July 2. |
