Copper trades flat in thin holiday trade

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HANOI — Copper was unchanged on Monday in tepid trade due to a holiday in top consumer China, while worries eased over supply disruption after a strike in Chile was avoided.

Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was almost flat at $10,007 a tonne by 0305 GMT. Aluminum rose 0.4% to $2,474 a tonne and nickel increased 0.4% to $18,295 a tonne and tin climbed 0.9% to $31,850 a tonne.

The Shanghai Futures Exchange is closed for a holiday.

Workers at BHP Group’s Spence copper mine in top producer Chile said last week they had reached a new contract deal with the company, avoiding a strike.

FUNDAMENTALS

* China plans to release state reserves of nonferrous metals copper, aluminum and zinc in a program set to last until the end of 2021, data provider Shanghai Metal Exchange Market and Chinese analysts said.

* Yangshan copper premium fell to $22 a tonne, its lowest since 2016, indicating weak demand for imported metal into China.

* Copper inventories in warehouses tracked by ShFE fell for the fourth straight week on Friday to 180,967 tonnes, the lowest level since March 12.

* ShFE tin stockpiles fell to their lowest since November 2020 at 4,563 tonnes, while lead inventories in ShFE warehouses leaped to 118,885 tonnes, their highest since June 2013.

* ShFE nickel inventories dropped to a record low of 7,471 tonnes.

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MARKETS NEWS

* The U.S. dollar held steady against major currencies on Monday, after posting its biggest weekly gain in more than a month, as traders closed short positions ahead of the Federal Reserve policy meeting this week.

DATA/EVENTS (GMT)

0630 India WPI Inflation YY May

0900 EU Industrial Production MM, YY April

(Reporting by Mai Nguyen; editing by Uttaresh.V)