SMM Evening Comments (Apr 14): Shanghai nonferrous metals closed mostly higher, nickel fell 0.35%

SHANGHAI, Apr 14 (SMM) – SHFE nonferrous metals rose for the most part on Wednesday April 14.

Aluminium, the best performer, rose 1.82%, copper advanced 0.47%, lead went up 1.19% and tin gained 0.08%, while nickel fell 0.35% and zinc dropped 0.23%.

The ferrous complex closed mixed. Rebar advanced 1.07%, hot-rolled coil rose 1.23%, while iron ore fell 0.39%.

Copper: The most-traded SHFE 2106 copper contract finished the day 0.47% higher at 66,190 yuan/mt. Open interest fell 3,233 lots to 101,316 lots.

Aluminium: The most-liquid SHFE 2105 aluminium contract finished the day 1.82% higher at 17,895 yuan/mt. Open interest fell 294 lots to 191,385 lots.

Zinc: The most-active SHFE 2105 zinc contract closed down 0.23% at 21,335 yuan/mt. Open interest rose 1,923 lots to 71,440 lots. In March, China's exports denominated in US dollars increased by 30.6% year on year, and the year-on-year growth rate dropped, which was weaker than seasonality and lower than market expectations. On fundamentals, the market turnover this week improved significantly compared with last week. It is expected that inventories will decrease sharply this week, supporting zinc prices in the near term. Whether the pressure of the moving averages above can be effectively broken will continue to be monitored in the near term, and it is expected that zinc prices will rebound.

Nickel: The most-traded SHFE 2106 nickel contract ended the day 0.35% lower at 121,520 yuan/mt today. Open interest rose 3,647 lots to 164,254 lots.

Lead: The most-traded SHFE 2105 lead contract rose to an intraday high of 14,905 yuan/mt and ended the day 1.19% higher at 14,880 yuan/mt. Open interest fell 2,157 lots to 49,710 lots. Trading in the spot market improved slightly today, and downstream restocking demand at low prices was partially released. However, there were not many circulating sources in the market, and the overall turnover was average. In the past two trading days, the premium for secondary refined lead narrowed, and some purchasing demand flowed to the primary lead market. The tepid consumption in the downstream of the lead market has not changed significantly. Whether the contract could stand firm above 14,800 yuan/mt will be monitored tonight.

Tin: The most-liquid SHFE 2106 tin contract fell to a session low of 176,800 yuan/mt and finished the day 0.08% higher at 177,680 yuan/mt today. Open interest rose 1,393 lots to 32,553 lots.