Copper prices steadied on Wednesday, buoyed by hopes of more support measures from top consumer China, while investors refrained from making big bets ahead of a US central bank interest rate decision.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was up 0.2 percent at $7,547.50 a ton, after declining 0.3 percent in early trade.
The most-traded September copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose 0.4 percent to 58,260 yuan ($8,610.45) a ton by the midday break.
“Expectation around China’s rescue package for the real estate sector is basically lending support to base metals prices,” said Kunal Shah, head of research at Nirmal Bang Commodities.
“The IMF (International Monetary Fund) indicating that we are on the brink of a recession means that the demand side for metals doesn’t look very lucrative.”
Supply is going to be tighter because of the power crisis in Europe and, thus, copper and zinc are likely to outperform in the base metals complex, he added.
Offering some respite amid growing demand worries, China will launch a fund worth up to 300 billion yuan ($44 billion) to help to ease a debt crisis in the property industry, a state bank official told Reuters.
