COMEX Copper Roundup for October 13

New York, October 13: Copper futures on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange (COMEX) fell for a fourth consecutive day on Friday, as the U.S. dollar strengthened and economic growth prospects worried, falling for a second consecutive week on the weekly chart.

As of the close, copper futures fell by 1.4 cents to 2.35 cents, with the most actively traded December 2023 copper closing at $3.571/lb, down 2 cents or 0.56% from the previous trading day, setting a new record The lowest closing price since October 5.

December copper futures traded in a trading range of $3.557 to $3.6165.

Copper fell 1.56% this cycle. For comparison, it fell 2.94% last week.

The U.S. dollar index, which measures the U.S. dollar against six major currencies, rose 0.06% to 106.434 on Friday, rising 0.61% for the week. This was the 12th rise in 13 weeks. The U.S. dollar is up 3.75% so far this year.

Data released by the United States on Thursday showed that the consumer price index rose by 0.4% in September, higher than the 0.3% increase expected by economists. This increased the market's expectation that the Federal Reserve will raise interest rates this year, boosting the dollar. A high interest rate environment will weaken economic growth and demand for commodities, and also boost the dollar, making copper less attractive to buyers holding other currencies.

COMEX copper futures (near-term contract) have fallen 3.92% so far this month and 5.93% so far this year. Friday's closing price is still 3.75% higher than the same period last year. For comparison, COMEX copper futures fell 14.58% in 2022, mainly because the global economic growth prospects are worrying, and high inflation has prompted European and American central banks to actively raise interest rates to curb inflation, which has intensified the risk of economic recession. In the medium to long term, however, the green transition of the global economy and the electrification of the global economy could help boost additional demand for this widely used metal in the power and construction industries.

Looking from the external market, November 2023 copper futures on the Shanghai Futures Exchange fell 230 yuan on Friday to 66,430 yuan/ton, down 790 yuan or 1.18% from a week ago. Shanghai International Energy Trading Center (INE) December bonded copper futures fell 130 yuan to 58,770 yuan per ton, down 760 yuan or 1.28% from a week ago.

At registered warehouses on the Shanghai Futures Exchange, copper stocks stood at 56,894 tons on Friday, an increase of 17,898 tons from 38,996 tons before the National Day. This was the first increase in three weeks and still 77.5% lower than the peak of 252,455 tons at the end of February. %.

On Friday, the trading volume of COMEX copper futures was 75,549 lots, compared with 79,893 lots on the previous trading day; the short volume was 211,380 lots, compared with 203,279 lots on the previous trading day.