SINGAPORE- Copper prices advanced on Wednesday on solid demand in top consumer China and supply worries in Chile, the world’s biggest producer of the red metal, though gains were limited on rising US-China tensions and COVID-19 cases globally.
The most-traded August copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose 0.1 percent to 52,460 yuan ($7,493.64) a ton, while three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange advanced 0.1 percent to $6,506 a ton.
China’s imports of unwrought copper in June were at a monthly record high, indicating solid demand, while potential strikes in Chile kept supply worries in check.
However, US President Donald Trump ordered an end to Hong Kong’s special status, souring tensions with China even further and raising the risk of economic retaliation between the world’s two biggest economies.
Meanwhile, rising virus cases and scattered movement restrictions around the world threatened a steady global economic recovery and metals demand.
