SHANGHAI, May 6 (SMM) — LME base metals advanced across the board on Thursday morning as investors digested a fresh round of corporate earnings and key economic data out of the euro zone.

Shanghai base metals Exchange was closed on Wednesday for the Labor Day holiday.

The LME complex all closed higher in overnight trading. Copper advanced 1.25%, aluminium added 1.12%, zinc gained 0.46%, lead rose 1.19%, nickel firmed 1.82% and tin climbed 5.19%.

Copper: Three-month LME copper fell 0.18% to end at $9,932/mt on Wednesday, and is likely to trade between $9,900-9,980/mt today.

The most-active SHFE 2106 copper contract it is expected to move between 72,000-72,500 yuan/mt today, while spot discounts will be seen at 160–50 yuan/mt.

ISM non-manufacturing PMI activity index of the US in April slipped from the record high in March, which was less than the market expectation. The US dollar index rebounded and stabilised after a brief pressure drop at night. Oil prices dropped sharply from the high level, which dragged down LME copper to a certain extent. It is expected that with the opening of the domestic market after the holiday and the inflow of funds in early May, the market will still show a bullish market. On the spot side, under the demand of downstream restocking after the May Day holiday, the market turnover is expected to show a more active state, and the discount market is expected to narrow again. With the domestic smelters entering for maintenance in April and May, and the continuous decline of import volume, the domestic refined copper supply end is expected to enter a tight state after May, and the spot market is expected to continue to pick up.

Aluminium: Three-month LME aluminium rose 0.76% to close at $2,247.5/mt on Wednesday. It is expected that the contract will trade between $2,420-2,460/mt today. It is expected that the domestic market will form a short-term resonance with LME aluminium after the holiday

The most-liquid SHFE 2105 aluminium contract is likely to trade between 18,800-19,300 yuan/mt today.

Zinc: Three-month LME zinc fell 0.8% to close at $2,931/mt on Wednesday. Zinc stocks at LME-listed warehouses fell 325 mt to 291,425 mt. Although the overnight nonfarm data increased but fell short of expectations, the market optimism cooled down, and LME zinc fluctuated downward. However, the Federal Reserve reiterated its monetary easing policy and the US Markit manufacturing PMI continued to refresh high in April to limit its decline. The contract is likely to trade between $2,920-2,970/mt today.

On the fundamentals, there is no big change in the most-liquid SHFE 2106 zinc contract, and it is expected to continue the pattern of increasing supply and decreasing demand, with insufficient fundamental support. However, considering the influence of overseas market linkage and macro easing sentiment, the contract is expected to fluctuate strongly. The SHFE zinc contract is expected to move between 22,200-22,700 yuan/mt today, while spot premiums for domestic 0# Shuangyan will be seen higher at 20 yuan/mt.

Lead: Three-month LME lead settled 0.21% lower at $2,164.5/mt on Wednesday. LME lead stocks continued to decrease slightly. The support from five-day moving average will be monitored.

Tin: Three-month LME tin closed up 1.5% at $29,770/mt on Wednesday. The pattern of overseas tin supply shortage has not improved significantly, and the data of inventory and spot premium show that there is further shortage in spot recently. In addition, according to the overseas network report, Malaysia Smelting Company (MSC), the third largest tin producer in the world, has told customers that its smelting business is seriously affected by the pandemic, and it will take nine months to resume normal production. MSC produced 22,400 mt of refined tin last year, accounting for 7% of the global supply last year. The market's worries about the global tin supply pushed LME tin close to $30,000/mt.

SHFE tin trading will resume today. Driven by the sharp rise of LME tin, the most-liquid SHFE 2106 tin contract is expected to open higher today, with the upper target of 200,000 yuan/mt. However, the changes in consumption and supply should be monitored for how long the rise lasts. Smelters with limited production due to environmental inspection in China will gradually resume normal production after the holiday, and the shortage of goods in SHFE tin market before the holiday may be alleviated. Yinman Mining resumed production from May 2. The sharp increase in tin prices is expected to depress the purchasing enthusiasm of downstream enterprises, and the pressure of higher inventories is expected to continue. The domestic market itself has limited upward momentum, so the guidance of the LME tin on the prices of SHFE tin should be monitored.