LME copper prices closed at $8,906.5/mt in overnight trading, a decline of 0.97%. Trading volume was 12,000 lots and open interest stood at 253,000 lots. The most active SHFE 2305 copper contract finished at 68,980 yuan/mt overnight, down 0.56%. Trading volume was 36,000 lots, and open interest stood at 170,000 lots.
On the macro front, the U.S. dollar fell sharply yesterday, rolling back the gains made after OPEC+ unexpectedly further cut oil production. In addition, data showed that the U.S. economy continued to slow down, with manufacturing activity and construction spending falling, which strengthened market expectations that the Fed’s interest rate hike is nearing an end.
In terms of fundamentals, as of Monday April 3, copper stocks in Chinese markets tracked by SMM increased 4,300 mt from last Friday 206,200 mt. The current total inventory increased 9,600 mt from before the Chinese New Year holidays and are 68,500 mt higher than the same period last year. The increase in inventory in east China is mainly due to the increase in imported copper and limited downstream stockpiling at the end of the month. The arrivals and shipments leaving Guangdong were both at a low level, showing weak supply and demand. In terms of consumption, the enthusiasm of downstream stockpiling will increase at the beginning of the month, but high copper prices will still restrain consumption.
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