Copper reached its highest level in seven and a half years on Friday for purchases by speculators and industrial users, acquisitions made in preparation for an uptick in coVID-19 vaccine-driven economy.
The red metal was traded today at US$3,38471 a pound counted ‘grade A’, which compares to $3,33685 on Thursday. This is the highest value of red metal since May 22, 2013, when it was quoted at US$3,3929 a pound.
“There is a stock replenishment by manufacturing companies, whose inventories were very low and now need metal after positive vaccine news,” said Gianclaudio Torlizzi, partner of consultancy T-Commodity in Milan.
Speculators also continued to buy after LME copper exceeded the key technical level of $7,300, opening a path to the next $8,000 target, Torlizzi added.
“The technical roadmap is clear and optimistic, but in the short term there is room for consolidation. After Monday’s China data, we may have one last explosion up and then there’s room for downbuilding.”
Chinese data on Monday are expected to show that the country’s manufacturing expanded at a slightly faster rate in November, according to economists surveyed by Reuters.
LME copper, which rose 2.7% during the week, has recovered by 71% since March due to a sharp uptick in demand from China’s main consumer and falling inventories.
