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Gold/Mining/Energy : first quantum minerals FM on TSE -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: Stephen O who wrote (337)	11/29/2001 12:49:43 PM
From: Stephen O	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 385

Copper Rises to 4 1/2-Month High on Signs of Demand Resurgence New York, Nov. 29 (Bloomberg) -- Copper rose to its highest price in 4 1/2 months, as government reports signaled a recovery in demand from U.S. manufacturers and builders. Factory orders for durable goods including automobiles and aircraft in October had their biggest gain in nine years, and new home sales rebounded as buyers were attracted by low borrowing costs, Commerce Department reports showed. Stronger demand is needed to extend the 21 percent rise in copper prices from a 14- year low early this month. ``We are off on the right foot now,'' said William O'Neill, head of futures research at Merrill Lynch & Co. in New York. ``We are being set up for an extended rally next year in base metals.'' Copper for December delivery rose as much as 1.25 cents, or 1.8 percent, to 72.75 cents a pound on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, the highest price for a most-active contract since July 12. In London, copper for delivery in three months rose as much as $36, or 2.3 percent, to $1,575 a metric ton (71.44 cents a pound) on the London Metal Exchange, the highest since July 18. New home sales in the U.S. rose in October to the fastest pace in four months, the Commerce Department said. The 0.2 percent increase brought the annual sales rate to 880,000 homes. Sales through October are on pace to finish the year at 912,000 homes, which would exceed the previous record set in 1998. The average 30-year mortgage rate dropped to 6.62 percent in October from 6.82 percent a month earlier and 7.8 percent in October 2000, according to statistics from Fannie Mae, the No. 2 buyer of U.S. mortgages. Builders are the biggest users of copper. An average single- family home contains about 400 pounds of the metal, according to the New York-based Copper Development Association, an industry group. Durable Goods U.S. orders for durable good rose a greater-than-expected 12.8 percent in October, rebounding from a revised 9.2 percent drop in September, the department reported. It was the biggest monthly gain in nine years. The increase in orders for durable goods was led by increased bookings for aircraft, automobiles and defense hardware, the department said. The resurgence in orders signals increased industrial demand for copper. Weakening demand from automakers and other manufacturers was the main cause of this year's 14 percent slide in copper prices. Automakers sold new vehicles at a record pace last month, depleting inventories and signaling a resurgence in demand for copper from that industry. Ford, the second-largest U.S. automaker, said this week it may have to build more North American cars and trucks in the first quarter than previously expected because no-interest loans brought its stockpiles to the lowest level since March 1992. An average car contains about 50 pounds of copper, according to the Copper Development Association. --Mark Shenk in the New York newsroom (212) 893-4331, or at mshenk1@bloomberg.net with reporting by Siobhan Hughes and Brendan Murray in the Washington newsroom/jb