Chinese Stimulus Measures Boost Market Sentiment,
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Earlier this week, the price of copper on the London Metal Exchange was on track to hit a new high, its biggest monthly gain since April. Three-month copper in London rose to $10,008 per metric ton, a 0.3% increase. This comes after the price of the red metal reached $10,158 in June.
Copper has various uses, among them its use in construction, industrial machinery and electrical equipment. The metal is a good conductor of both electricity and heat.
Thus far this month, the red metal has risen by 8.3%. The most recent price run comes after the People’s Bank of China announced that it would direct banks to reduce their mortgage rates for existing home loans before Oct. 31, 2024. This is part of the policies introduced to support the east Asian nation’s stressed property market.
The market has been in turmoil since 2021, when developers defaulted on loans, plunging the entire market into crisis. Soon after this, demand as well as prices collapsed.
Since the initial crash, the value of housing sold has reduced by almost a quarter. Currently, millions of apartments stand empty, with other unfinished apartments facing delays since developers have no funds to pay builders.
During the recent price run, Chinese stocks saw price increases, with the yuan posting its biggest quarterly gain against the greenback since 2020. This made metals priced by the dollar more attractive for buyers using the yuan.
U.S. Comex copper futures also rose to $4.79 per pound, its highest price since May. Soon after, the price dropped to $4.61 per pound.
London Metal Exchange (LME) Week is an annual gathering of participants in the metals industry that occurs in London. The gathering, which began earlier this week, coincided with the last trading day in China, before the Golden Week holiday.
Ole Hansen, Saxo Bank head of commodity strategy, stated that for the momentum to be sustained and the price to increase even further, the red metal would need to record actual physical demand. He added that the key level for the metal would be $10,200. In May, the price of copper reached $11,104.50.
Copper wasn’t the only metal to record increases on the LME either. Tin saw its price rise to $33,125, representing a 0.6% climb. Lead’s price also rose, hitting $2,122.50, a mild increase of 0.1%. Zinc also saw its price rise by 0.6% to reach $3,107.50 while the price of nickel increased to $17,335, a 2.0% rise. Aluminum, however, saw its price drop to $2,602 per ton, a 1.7% decrease.
The changing fortunes of copper on the international market are likely to be watched by actors in the copper industry such as First Tellurium Corp. (CSE: FTEL) (OTCQB: FSTTF) since pricing can help in deciphering the future trajectory of this critical metal.
NOTE TO INVESTORS: The latest news and updates relating to First Tellurium Corp. (CSE: FTEL) (OTCQB: FSTTF) are available in the company’s newsroom at https://ibn.fm/FSTTF
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