Copper Rises as Manufacturing Speeds Up in China, World's Biggest Consumer

Copper prices in New York rose the most in a week as manufacturing accelerated in China, the world’s biggest consumer.

A purchasing managers’ index released by China’s logistics federation climbed to 54.7 in October from 53.8 the prior month, topping forecasts. Readings greater than 50 signal growth. The Thomson Reuters/Jefferies CRB Index of 19 raw materials climbed to the highest level since October 2008, led by gains in cotton, energy and copper.

“The market is getting a boost from that manufacturing data out of China,” said Matthew Zeman, a metal trader at LaSalle Futures Group in Chicago. “The Chinese economy continues to gather steam, and that’s positive for copper.”

Copper futures for delivery in December rose 5.15 cents, or 1.4 percent, to close $3.785 a pound at 1:13 p.m. on the Comex in New York, the biggest gain since Oct. 25.

Better-than-expected manufacturing data in the U.S. also helped support prices, Zeman said. Copper may reach $3.90 this week, he said.

The Institute for Supply Management’s factory index rose to 56.9 last month, the highest since May, from 54.4, the Tempe, Arizona-based group said today. The median forecast of economists surveyed by Bloomberg News was for a decline to 54.

Investors are more bullish on copper than at any time since January, government data show.

In the week ended Oct. 26, speculative long positions, or bets or rising prices, outnumbered short positions by 26,463 contracts, the most since Jan. 29, the U.S. Commodity Futures Trading Commission said on Oct. 29.

On the London Metal Exchange, copper for delivery in three months added $100, or 1.2 percent, to $8,300 a metric ton （$3.76 a pound）. Lead, zinc, nickel and aluminum also gained on the LME, while tin was unchanged.