LME copper prices closed at $8,955/mt last evening, down 0.98%. Trading volume was 14,000 lots and open interest stood at 262,000 lots. SHFE 2305 copper contract finished at 69,550 yuan/mt last evening, down 0.7%. Trading volume was 32,000 lots, and open interest stood at 171,000 lots.
On the macro front, New York State in the United States announced that manufacturing activity in April increased for the first time in five months, which strengthened the market's expectations for the Fed's interest rate hike in May. The US index rose, weighing on copper prices.
On the fundamentals, as of Monday April 17, SMM copper inventory across major Chinese markets added 1,500 Inventory mt from last Friday to 191,600 mt, up 52,000 mt from the same period of 2022. Inventories fell in east China mainly due to the increase in direct shipments from refineries to downstream companies, and the supply of domestically produced copper to delivery warehouses did not continue to increase.
In south China, due to the approaching delivery, the supply of goods to delivery warehouses increased, growing inventory there.
If copper prices continue to fluctuate at high levels, downstream consumption will continue to be under pressure.
Copper price fluctuations will be more subject to the macro environment. With expectations of Fed rate hike, copper prices will meet resistance.
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