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LONDON Copper prices fell on Thursday, pressured by signs of sluggish demand for the red metal from top metals consumer China and efforts in that country to curb surging prices for base metals.
There were reports that China’s state reserves administration plans to sell its reserves of copper, aluminum and zinc in a program expected to last until the end of 2021.
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Benchmark three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) eased 0.9% to $9,889 per tonne by 1555 GMT, close to its lowest since late April.
Indian jewellers stay shut as lockdowns stifle gold demand
5 hours ago A saleswoman displays a gold necklace inside a jewellery showroom in Kolkata. File/Reuters
Physical gold demand in second-biggest bullion consumer India was negligible this week with most jewellery stores still shut by COVID-19 lockdowns, forcing dealers to offer steep discounts.
“Lockdowns are badly hitting the industry. Jewellers have stopped buying since retail demand is almost zero,” said Ashok Jain, proprietor of Mumbai-based gold wholesaler Chenaji Narsinghji.
Most states have imposed curbs as infections crossed 27 million, with over 3,000 people dying every day.
Dealers offered discounts of up to $10 an ounce, the highest since mid-September 2020, over official domestic prices - inclusive of 10.75% import and 3% sales levies - unchanged from last week.
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LONDON Copper burst higher on Friday to a record peak, fueled by speculators and industrial buyers on the back of rosy economic data as Western economies recover from the pandemic.
Benchmark copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) broke above the previous record high of $10,190 set in 2011 and had gained 2.3% to $10,325 by 1000 GMT.
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Prices have soared by 135% since the lows of last March when the emerging COVID-19 pandemic began to hit demand.
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LONDON Copper fell on Monday after modest economic growth targets from China and indications that it could pull back on credit expansion, though analysts remained positive on the metal’s long-term fundamentals.
China, the world’s biggest metals consumer, is widely expected to rein in coronavirus-related stimulus and cool credit growth to contain debt risks.
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“The trigger for lower prices came from the latest communication from the Chinese government,” said Gianclaudio Torlizzi at consultancy T-Commodity.