Copper May Drop as U.S. Economy Loses More Jobs, Survey Shows

By Claudia Carpenter

Sept. 26 (Bloomberg) -- Copper may fall next week on slowing growth in the U.S. economy, the second-largest buyer of the metal used in wires and pipes.

Fifteen of 28 analysts and traders surveyed by Bloomberg News yesterday and Sept. 24 forecast copper will decline. Eleven expected an advance and two were neutral. Copper for delivery in three months on the London Metal Exchange is down 2 percent this week.

U.S. employers probably slashed 90,000 jobs overall this month, economists said before a report set for release by the U.S. Labor Department on Oct. 3. Jobs in construction, the biggest use for copper, have dropped for the past 14 months. China is the largest buyer of copper.

This week's survey results: Bullish: 11 Bearish: 15 Neutral: 2

To contact the reporter on this story: Claudia Carpenter in London at ccarpenter2@bloomberg.net