subject: Frbiz.com Reported Us Copper Ends Down From 16-month Peak On China Fear [print this page] U.S. copper futures ended lower on Thursday, pulling back from a fresh 16-month peak, as signs of tighter monetary policy in China triggered concerns about demand growth in the world's top copper consumer.
Benchmark copper for March delivery HGH0 shed 6.75 cents, or 1.9 percent, to finish at $3.4270 per lb on the New York Mercantile Exchange's COMEX division.
Range from $3.4255 to $3.5440, a new high for the red metal on the spot daily third position chart since August 2008.
COMEX estimated futures volume at 24,081 lots by 1 p.m. EST (1800 GMT). Final volume on Wednesday hit 30,719 lots.
Open interest rose 1,420 lots to 159,959 contracts as of Jan. 6.
COMEX copper losses track similar weakness in Asian and European markets after People's Bank of China unexpectedly raised auction yields of its three-month bills for the first time since mid-August.
Chinese rate hike seen as a significant move in tightening liquidity and could be a first step in metal giant's attempt to reign in speculative excesses in economy - Steve Platt, futures analyst with Archer Financial Services.
Market cautious ahead of monthly U.S. payrolls data on Friday. Economists look for a loss of 8,000 non-farm jobs after a surprisingly small total of 11,000 job losses in November.
Selling pressure seen ahead of rebalancing of the Dow Jones UBS and Goldman Sachs commodity indexes.
London Metal Exchange (LME) warehouse stocks rose 75 tonnes to 507,475 tonnes, their highest level since March.
COMEX copper stocks stood even at 99,368 short tons as of Wednesday.
Codelco, the world's leading copper producer, hopes to recover production losses at massive Chuquicamata copper mine during the first half of the year.
LME copper for three-month delivery MCU3 closed at $7,535 a tonne from $7,660 on Wednesday. Earlier, it hit a fresh 16-month peak at $7,796.
by: heiyou
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