By Eric Onstad
LONDON, Nov 9 (Reuters) – Copper prices ticked higher on Tuesday on worries about shortages as inventories eroded further ahead of new U.S. spending on infrastructure.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange CMCU3 had added 0.5% to $9,683 a tonne by 1030 GMT, after rising by 1.3% on Monday.
“The market is concerned about lack of supplies going forward and that’s providing the bid we’re seeing today,” said Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo Bank in Copenhagen.
“These key metals are desperately needed not only in the green transformation push but in these infrastructure plans that are being unveiled.”
The $1 trillion U.S. infrastructure bill passed last week will fund bridge and highway repair, new broadband and public transportation projects and a network of electric-vehicle charging stations across the country.
The most-traded December copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange SCFcv1 closed up 0.7% at 70,550 yuan ($11,026.88) a tonne.
The upside was capped by worries about the ongoing property crisis in China, Hansen said.
Chinese developer Kaisa told a Chinese government think-tank it needs help to pay investors, workers and suppliers after the real estate sector was hit by a liquidity squeeze.
The real estate sector accounts for a large share of copper consumption and China is the world’s biggest user of the metal.
Energy shortages in China and electricity price hikes in Europe also posed risks of reduced demand from metal users.
* LME copper inventories MCUSTX-TOTAL fell to 109,550 tonnes, the lowest since March and down by more than half over the past two months.
* On-warrant LME aluminium stocks MALSTX-TOTAL, metal not earmarked for delivery, tumbled to 599,925 tonnes, the lowest since Dec. 2005.
* LME aluminium CMAL3 edged up 0.2% to $2,609.50 a tonne, zinc CMZN3 advanced 0.6% to $3,289, lead CMPB3 rose 0.2% to $2,369, nickel CMNI3 added 0.2% to $19,670 and tin CMSN3 climbed 0.5% to 37,525.
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($1 = 6.3980 yuan)
(Additional reporting by Mai Nguyen in Hanoi; Editing by Aditya Soni)
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