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

To: Stephen O who wrote (1285)	5/14/2002 11:45:23 AM
From: Stephen O	Read Replies (1) \| Respond to of 1643

Copper Rises as Retail Sales Report Signals Economic Growth New York, May 14 (Bloomberg) -- Copper rose to a two-week high as a report of a larger-than-expected gain in U.S. retail sales improved prospects for an economic resurgence that would boost demand for metals. The 1.2 percent rise in April sales reported by the Commerce Department was the biggest since October. The report reinforced expectations for continued growth of the U.S. economy, which expanded in the first quarter at the fastest pace in two years. ``We need better economic conditions to improve copper demand, and it is possible that the economy will improve better than expected in the second quarter,'' said Jim Steel, vice president of commodity research at Refco Inc. in New York. Copper for July delivery rose as much as 0.6 cent, or 0.8 percent, to 74.35 cents a pound on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, the highest price since April 29. Prices have risen 23 percent from a 14-year low in November as the U.S. economy recovered from last year's recession. They still were 1.5 percent lower than a year earlier. In London, copper for delivery in three months rose as much as $10.50, or 0.7 percent, to $1,620 a metric ton (73.48 cents a pound) on the London Metal Exchange. The gain in retail sales reported by the Commerce Department was larger than the 0.6 percent increase expected by economists in a Bloomberg survey. Sales at auto dealers and auto-parts stores rose 1.9 percent, also the largest increase since October. An average automobile contains about 50 pounds of copper, according to the New York- based Copper Development Association. Stores that sell building materials, including copper wire and pipes, saw sales rise 2.7 percent, following a 1.7 percent gain in March, the report showed. Builders are the largest users of copper and steady demand for new homes in the U.S. last year helped buoy prices for the metal during the recession. --Claudia Carpenter in the New York newsroom (212) 318-2346 or at ccarpenter2@bloomberg.net with reporting by Monee Fields-White in Washington. Editor: Bixby