Copper rose, supported by persistent concerns about supply tightness and as the euro trimmed losses after US data lifted risk sentiment. Benchmark copper for three-month delivery on the London Metal Exchange closed at $8,360 a tonne from $8,220 at the close on Monday. The metal, used in power and construction, had peaked earlier in the day at $8,408, its highest in a week. Chile's Collahuasi, the world's No 3 copper mine, said on Tuesday its operations were normalising as it resumed talks with union leaders to end a strike that appears headed into a fourth week. Worries about nearby copper supplies have pushed the premium or backwardation for cash material over the three-month contract to around $50 a tonne -- its widest backwardation since October 2008. A looming deficit in the copper market is expected to push copper prices next year above the record high of $8,966 hit earlier this month. Bolstering this outlook, LME copper stocks have fallen steadily since February, last down 800 tonnes to 355,750 tonnes -- their lowest since October 2009. Investors also kept close tabs on a dominant position controlling 50-80 per cent of cash warrants for both copper and nickel, subject to LME lending guidance.
AVB Price at posting:
13.5¢ Sentiment: Hold Disclosure: Held
