Base metals on the London Metal Exchange (LME) closed on a negative note yesterday, except lead which was almost stable d-o-d, SteelMint noted. Meanwhile, the same trading on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) also closed lower.
Market participants had hoped that China’s Covid-19 infections would ease and metals consumption would eventually improve but the latest outbreak in Shenzhen city, where some major services were halted, has hurt confidence and also, a looming US interest rate hike raised fresh concerns on demand of metals.
On the other hand, India’s Ministry of Statistics and Programme Implementation (MOSPI) will release gross domestic product (GDP) data for the April-June 2022 quarter today evening, and it is forecasted that the country’s economy has grown during the period.
Base metals market performance – 30 August
SHFE copper shed 0.96%, aluminium lost 0.44%, lead inched up 0.07%, and zinc slid 0.74%.
LME 3-month copper fell by 3.63%, lead remained stable, aluminium down 4.09%, zinc decreased by 2.33% and nickel lost by 1.22%.
MCX aluminium down 2.91%, nickel decreased 0.56%, lead down 0.22%, copper fell 1.86%, zinc down 1.73%.
Stock levels fluctuate
LME registered warehouse stocks of base metals fell by up to 1.18% d-o-d. However, copper and aluminium stocks increased marginally by up to 0.88%.
Oil prices edge up
Brent oil futures rose by 2% to $99.97 per barrel and crude oil WTI futures increased 0.67% to $92.26 per barrel at the time of reporting.
Currency exchange
The domestic rupee tumbled to a new low at $80.11 against the US dollar at the start of the week. However, the domestic unit traded at 79.55 against the greenback at the time of reporting, appreciating 0.21 paise d-o-d.
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