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Strategies & Market Trends : Commodities - The Coming Bull Market -- Ignore unavailable to you. Want to Upgrade?

To: craig crawford who wrote (1021)	1/31/2002 12:46:07 PM
From: Stephen O	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1643

Copper Climbs as Report Signals a Rebound in U.S. Metals Demand New York, Jan. 31 (Bloomberg) -- Copper futures rose for the first time in five sessions as a report showing an improvement in Midwest manufacturing provided evidence of an economic recovery that would boost metals demand. A Chicago-area factory index published by the National Association of Purchasing Management rose for the first time in four months. Weakening industrial demand for wires and pipe as the U.S. sank into recession contributed to the 16 percent drop in copper prices in the past year. ``The expectation is that copper demand will pick up, perhaps sooner than expected a month ago,'' said David Rinehimer, director of futures research at Salomon Smith Barney Inc. in New York. Copper for March delivery rose as much as 1.5 cents, or 2.2 percent, to 71.2 cents a pound on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, the biggest gain in three weeks. Prices have risen 8 percent this month. In London, copper for delivery in three months rose as much as $19, or 1.2 percent, to $1,548 a metric ton (70.22 cents a pound) on the London Metal Exchange. The U.S. economy unexpectedly grew in the final three months of last year, gaining at a 0.2 percent annual rate, following a 1.3 percent decline in the third quarter, the Commerce Department said yesterday. Orders for durable goods such as cars and appliances rose 2 percent in December. `Conclusive Evidence' Needed While copper has risen 18 percent from a 14-year low of 60.35 cents a pound on Nov. 8, futures prices are likely to trade between 66 and 74 cents until there are more concrete signs of a rebound in metals demand, Rinehimer said. ``The market's going to need conclusive evidence that demand is picking up before prices can go much higher,'' he said. Inventories of copper in London Metal Exchange-monitored warehouses are continuing to climb, a sign that supply still is outpacing demand. Inventories have more than doubled in the past year to a record 853,600 metric tons. The Chicago factory index rose to 45.1 this month from 41.5 in December. While the index rose, readings below 50 indicate that business contracted. An employment index showed Chicago-area factories continued to cut jobs. --Claudia Carpenter in the New York newsroom (212) 318-2346 or at ccarpenter2@bloomberg.net with reporting by Andrew Ward in Chicago. Editor: Bixby