Copper Rises to 17-Week High on U.S. Manufacturing, Housing Data
January 18, 2012, 8:12 PM ESTBy Joe Richter
Jan. 18 (Bloomberg) -- Copper futures rose to a 17-week high as reports showing gains in U.S. manufacturing and homebuilder sentiment bolstered prospects for metal demand.
Factory output rebounded in December, climbing the most in a year as production of business equipment, automobiles and construction materials rose, figures from the Federal Reserve showed today. A National Association of Home Builders/Wells Fargo gauge showed homebuilder confidence rose in January to the highest in more than four years. Stocks rose, driving the Standard & Poor’s 500 Index to a five-month high.
“The U.S. economic data is supporting equities, and copper is moving with that,” Adam Klopfenstein, a market strategist at Archer Financial Services Inc. in Chicago, said in a telephone interview. “Any time you see positive news out of the housing sector, that’s bullish for copper.”
Copper futures for March delivery gained 0.6 percent to settle at $3.7525 a pound at 1:19 p.m. on the Comex in New York. Earlier, the price reached $3.7595, the highest for a most- active contract since Sept. 21.
On the London Metal Exchange, copper for delivery in three months climbed 0.5 percent $8,239 a metric ton ($3.74 a pound). Earlier, the price fell as much as 1 percent after the World Bank cut its forecast for global economic growth.
Zinc, lead and tin also advanced in London, while nickel and aluminum fell.
--With assistance from Agnieszka Troszkiewicz in London and Timothy Homan in Washington. Editors: Patrick McKiernan, Thomas Galatola
To contact the reporter on this story: Joe Richter in New York at jrichter1@bloomberg.net
To contact the editor responsible for this story: Steve Stroth at sstroth@bloomberg.net
