LONDON- Copper prices edged up on Friday, boosted by a weak dollar, fresh support by China for its troubled property sector and worries about a potential tightening of supply from mines.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) was up 0.7 percent at $8,274 a metric ton after retreating from a six-week high in the previous session.
US Comex copper futures gained 0.6 percent to $3.72 a lb.
“We’re waiting to see what happens in Panama. There’s no doubt that on the mining side of things, it’s pretty tight,” Dan Smith, head of research at Amalgamated Metal Trading, said.
First Quantum Minerals this week reduced ore processing at Cobre Panama, one of the world’s biggest copper mines, as protests against the project blocked port access.
“The fundamental story for copper is very important – the green energy transition being very strong – and that’s why nobody’s that bearish on copper at the moment,” Smith added.
In the short term, technical signals were suggesting a correction, but prices should resume the uptrend into year-end, he added.
LME copper has bounced from an 11-month low of $7,856 on Oct. 23.
The dollar was on track for one of its steepest weekly falls against major currencies this year as concerns grow about the worsening global economic outlook. -Reuters
