Copper Remains Stable as Brexit Fears Eased

Copper prices gained on Friday as concerns over the Brexit vote eased. At 3:12 PM EDT on June 17, 2016, COMEX copper for July delivery was trading at ~$2.05 per pound, a gain of 0.29%. The weaker dollar also gave support to prices on Friday.

Considering the fact that the China accounts for more than 45% of the world’s copper demand, the country’s economic health acts as one of the important drivers for copper demand. The recently released Chinese economic data failed to assure the rise in copper demand and dented its sentiment.

Although the upbeat economic data from March sparked hopes for a surge in copper demand, the data related to April and May, as well as the decline of Chinese copper imports, raised doubts over domestic copper demand.

According to recent data, Chinese imports of unwrought copper and products declined in April and May after reaching a record level in March 2016. To learn more about Chinese imports, please read What’s Driving China’s Copper Imports in 2016?

Although the fundamentals are not as supportive of the Market’s sentiment, the weakness of the dollar and decreased anxiety over the Brexit vote helped copper on Friday. The recent increase of copper inventory levels in LME and the global uncertainty amid the central bank meetings kept pressure on copper prices.

At 3:23 PM EDT on June 17, major copper producers Freeport-McMoRan (FCX), Glencore (GLNCY), BHP Billiton (BHP), and Rio Tinto (RIO) gained ~3.3%, ~2.6%, ~3.1%, and ~2.6%, respectively. The base metal–related SPDR S&P Metals & Mining ETF (XME) gained 1.3%.

The next article explains the performance of gold and silver on June 17.