Shanghai copper rises

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Copper prices in Shanghai climbed five-week highs on Thursday, supported by the prospect of a US rate cut this year, while an output cut in South Korea also helped zinc hit a five-week high.

The most-traded April copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose 0.5 percent  to 69,350 yuan ($9,635.69) a metric ton. Earlier in the session, it hit 69,580 yuan, its highest since Feb. 1.

Prices were supported by the reassurance from US Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell that the central bank would likely cut rates in the coming months, which could lead to an improvement in economic activities and better metals demand.

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Top consumer China imported 902,000 tons of unwrought copper in the first two months of this year, up 2.6 percent  from a year ago.

Yangshan copper premium rose to $60 a ton on Wednesday, the highest since Jan. 19, indicating improving appetite for copper import into China.

However, three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange fell 0.2 percent  to $8,557 a ton, retreating from Wednesday’s gain, as uncertainty over demand and the lack of details on Chinese stimulus measures weighed.

SHFE zinc climbed as much as 1.3 percent  to 21,030 yuan, the highest since Feb. 1. LME zinc was flat at $2,494.50 on Thursday, but it surged to the highest since Feb. 1 in the previous session.

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