Shanghai Copper Futures Rise On Supply Tightness, LME

BEIJING, Feb 10, 2012 (Dow Jones) -- Copper futures extended gains on the Shanghai Futures Exchange Friday on the back of overnight London Metal Exchange gains, signs of faltering Chinese imports and tighter global supply fundamentals.

The most actively traded May copper contract settled 0.3% higher at CNY61,760 a metric ton.

Signs of slower mine production globally will likely underpin prices, analysts said.

"The copper mine supply-side experienced an appalling year by any standards in 2011, with what can only be described as a perfect storm of disruptions impacting output," Barclays Capital analyst Nicholas Snowdon said.

Problematic ramp-ups and labor disputes were some issues that slowed global mining output by about 1.3% last year, the first contraction since 2002 and the largest by volume on record, he said.

Chinese customs data Friday showed January copper and copper product imports fell 19% from December to 413,964 tons.

Analysts attributed the decline mostly to distortion from a weeklong Lunar New Year break in January, but signals of tighter supply generally support prices.

Spot copper traded at the Changjiang Nonferrous Metals Trading Market, a major spot market in Shanghai, was quoted at CNY60,500-60,700/ton, up slightly from CNY60,400-60,550/ton Thursday.

London Metal Exchange base metal prices were lifted by reports of a Greek austerity deal.

Three-month copper ended the afternoon kerb up 2% at $8,755/ton, its highest since Sept. 13.

The contract was quoted 1% lower at $8,670/ton around 0700 GMT, when Shanghai closed.

Shanghai aluminum tracked copper higher Friday, but zinc and lead settled lower.

Following are Friday's settlement prices in yuan a ton and LME late kerb prices from Thursday in dollars a ton:

Metal       SHFE                   LME
Copper      May  61,760  Up  180   3Mo 8,755   Up 175
Aluminum    May  16,330  Up   25   3Mo 2,289   Up  36
Zinc        Apr  16,170  Down 10   3Mo 2,160   Up  45
Lead        Apr  16,210  Down  5   3Mo 2,222   Up  41