MARKET ROUNDUP
Industrial metals fell to multi-week lows on Wednesday and remained depressed in late trade as the dollar extended gains against the euro after the U.S. Federal Reserve kept interest rates at record lows near zero to help the economy recover and boost employment. Lead witnessed the major downside as it closed almost 6% lower. Copper too witnessed a major downside of almost 5% in last trading session.
IN FOCUS
- Benchmark iron ore prices are set to rise by 30 percent for the 2010/2011 contract term, due to soaring demand from top importer China, where steel output is running at record highs, a Reuters survey showed on Wednesday.
- Iron ore output from BHP Billiton, the world's top miner, rose by 11 percent in the last quarter of 2009 to meet demand from importreliant China. The country's December ironore imports from Australia surged by 40 percent.
- Zinc in concentrate production from Australia's giant Century mine is expected to rise to 500,000-510,000 tonnes this year, rebounding from technical problems that cut output by 29 percent in 2009, Minmetals said.
- Copper miner Grupo Mexico has made a fresh offer to unionized workers to end a two-yearlong strike at the giant Cananea mine, the company said in a statement seen by Reuterson Wednesday.
- Australia's Century zinc mine has ceased concentrate production due to a tropical storm bearing down on Australia's tropical north region, the mine's owner, Minmetals said on Thursday.
- Japanese copper wire and cable shipments amounted to an estimated 56,300 tonnes in December, down 2.4 percent from a year earlier, an industry body said.
FUNDAMENTAL OUTLOOK
Industrial metals are trading mixed on international bourses. Copper and Nickel in particular are trading firm on LME. Lead after extending its previous day losses is down by almost 2%. Outlook for industrial metals is sideways to up as well for the day; as we expect some bounce back in these industrial metals during the day.
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