SHANGHAI — Metal prices in London were mostly up on Thursday ahead of the US-China trade talks this weekend, following the Federal Reserve’s warning that increasing inflation and labour market risks could fuel economic uncertainty.
Benchmark copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) rose 0.5 percent to $9,467 a metric ton.
On Wednesday, the Fed kept interest rates unchanged, acknowledging that risks of higher inflation and unemployment had risen, further clouding the US economic outlook amid the effects of President Donald Trump’s tariffs.
Fed Chair Jerome Powell said it isn’t clear if the economy will continue its steady pace of growth or wilt under mounting uncertainty and a possible coming spike in inflation.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration will announce a trade deal on Thursday with the United Kingdom, the New York Times reported late on Wednesday.
At the same time, traders adopted a cautious stance ahead of the scheduled US-China meeting in Switzerland this weekend, after months of escalating tensions that pushed tariffs between the world’s two largest economies well beyond 100 percent.
