Copper prices fell as US job market remains resilient

LME copper prices opened at $8280/mt and closed at $8305/mt in overnight trading, a decline of 0.68%, with the low-end of $8265/mt and the high-end of $8330/mt. Trading volume was 23,000 lots, and open interest stood at 284,000 lots.

The most active SHFE 2310 copper contract prices opened at 68890 yuan/mt and closed at 68910 yuan/mt last evening, down 0.33%, with the high-end of 68980 yuan/mt and the low-end of 68740 yuan/mt. Trading volumes stood at 32,000 lots and open interest stood at 152,000 lots.

On the macro front, after the ISM non-manufacturing index showed that the service industry was still strong on Wednesday, the number of initial jobless claims announced on Thursday hit a half-year low, which also showed that the labor market is still resilient. This once again strengthened the market’s expectations of the Fed’s tightening measures. Two senior Federal Reserve officials hinted on Thursday (September 7) that the Fed will keep interest rates unchanged at its September meeting. But they refused to declare victory in the fight against inflation.

In terms of fundamentals, east China was still affected by the continuous inflow of imported copper, and the spot quotes continued to decline yesterday. Although the copper prices moved down, the enthusiasm for downstream procurement was still weak. The inventory in south China has declined for 2 consecutive days, mainly due to the lack of arrivals. The overall transaction yesterday improved compared with Wednesday. In terms of consumption, demand growth is expected to be limited. In terms of prices, copper prices are expected to be under pressure in the near future as the U.S. labor market remains resilient.