Base metals rise

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Most base metal prices rose on Wednesday as investors and traders took increasing bets that the US monetary policy tightening cycle might be over after job openings in that country fell to more than a 2-1/2-year low in October.

Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange rose 0.5 percent  to $8,379 per metric ton, while the most-traded January copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange eased 0.5 percent  to 67,870 yuan ($9,484.22) a ton.

LME aluminum advanced 0.3 percent  to $2,167 a ton, nickel climbed 3.7 percent  to $16,735, zinc rose 0.7 percent  to $2,439.50, lead increased 0.9 percent  to $2,069 and tin jumped 1.8 percent  to $24,420.

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SHFE nickel climbed 1.6 percent  to 129,770 yuan a ton, zinc edged up 0.3 percent  at 20,585 yuan, tin increased 1.9 percent  to 204,820 yuan while aluminum eased 0.1 percent  to 18,455 yuan and lead fell 0.4 percent  to 15,585 yuan.

US job openings fell to a more than a 2-1/2-year low in October, the strongest sign yet that higher interest rates were dampening demand for workers and boosting financial markets expectations the Federal Reserve’s monetary policy tightening cycle was over.

Higher rates usually lead to a stronger dollar, which makes greenback-priced metals more expensive to holders of other currencies. Rising interest rates also often hurt economic growth, which is linked to metals demand.

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