Copper Heads for Best Six Months in 22 Years on Demand Outlook

LONDON, June 30 -- Copper gained for a second day in Asia, heading for its best six months in 22 years on optimism a global economic recovery may revive demand for the metal used in construction and automobiles.

    The metal has surged 68 percent this year, the biggest six- month gain since the second half of 1987, as Chinese buyers boosted imports to records to replenish stockpiles.

    "Market sentiment is definitely improving," Chen Yonglin, an analyst at CITIC Newedge Futures Co., said from Shanghai. "While we're not going to see record prices soon, the downside is probably limited from here."

    Three-month delivery copper on the London Metal Exchange gained as much as 1 percent to $5,150 a metric ton and traded at $5,131 at 11:31 a.m. Singapore time. Copper for September delivery in New York climbed 0.7 percent to $2.3415 a pound.

    October-delivery copper on the Shanghai Futures Exchange gained as much as 1.5 percent to 40,870 yuan ($5,982) a ton, before trading at 40,760 yuan, up 71 percent this year.

    Stockpiles of the metal tallied by the London Metal Exchange have declined every day since May 7, the longest slide since April 2004. Copper inventories in Shanghai fell 18 percent last week, the first drop in four weeks, the Shanghai Futures Exchange said in a June 26 report.

    Weakness in the dollar has also helped boost commodity prices this year, according to Chen. The dollar fell against 11 of the 16 major currencies this year as increased investor risk appetite spurred demand for higher-yielding assets.

    Among other LME-traded metals, aluminum rose 0.5 percent to $1,648.75 a ton, zinc gained 0.6 percent to $1,570 a ton and lead climbed 1 percent to $1,720 a ton. Nickel was unchanged at $15,800 a ton, while tin added 1.3 percent to $14,800 a ton as of 11:04 a.m. in Singapore.

    (Source: Bloomberg)