BEIJING- Copper prices were subdued on Wednesday amid a stronger US dollar and hazy demand outlook for the metal, despite some supply disruptions in the market.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange little moved at $8,186 per metric ton while the most-traded December copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange slid 0.3 percent to 67,390 yuan ($9,260.43) per ton.
The dollar index gained after appetite for riskier currencies diminishes, gaining on the euro after a larger-than-expected fall in German industrial production in September.
A stronger dollar typically weighs down metal prices, as it makes it more expensive to buy the greenback-priced commodity.
Also weighing on the market was a gloomy demand outlook of the metal used in power, construction and transportation sectors.
Some analysts expected a slower growth of China’s copper demand in 2024 amid an uneven economic recovery in the world’s top metal consumer.
Codelco, the world’s largest copper producer, has offered to sell copper at a premium of $89 a metric ton to major Chinese clients for its 2024 contracts, down from this year’s $140 a ton.
Copper and cobalt produced by companies, including Glencore and CMOC, are stranded in Kolwezi, Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC), due to a truckers strike that started in late October, Reuters reported on Tuesday.