Copper prices lower as US confidence declines

Copper prices fell Tuesday after the Conference Board reported that US consumer confidence dropped in June, with it’s confidence index at 52.9 for the month, down from 62.7 in May, on a refigure of China’s leading economic indicators made necessary by what the Conference Board called a computing error, and on a weaker euro and declines in global equities markets.

The Conference Board’s adjustment of the China had that Asian nation’s leading economic indicators up just 0.3 percent in April, rather than the 1.7 percent rise reported earlier, leading to concerns that China’s economy is growing more slowly and that other global economies will follow.

July contracts for copper fell 16 cents to $2.91 per pound in New York trade, while three-month contracts for the metal used in construction and manufacturing dropped $375 to $6,494 per tonne on the London Metal Exchange after going as low as $6,476 per tonne earlier in the day even though inventories dropped by 1,225 tonnes on the session.

Other base metals followed suit, with aluminium down $79 to $1,950 per tonne as stockpiles in LME-monitored warehouses fell 7,075 tonnes but remained at nearly 4.5 million tonnes, while zinc fell $137 to $1,743 per tonne, lead was $140 lower to $1,720 per tonne, tin was down $650 to $17,600 per tonne and nickel dropped $1,530 to $19,075 per tonne.

Among precious metals, August gold added $3.80 to $1,242.40 per troy ounce on the decline in US consumer sentiment, and as the bad news send investors looking for safer places to put their cash.

On the other hand, July silver fell 8 cents to $18.59 per troy ounce while September palladium dropped $18.05 to $454.40 per troy ounce.