Copper Drops in London on Speculation China’s Growth Is Slowing

By Claudia Carpenter

Dec. 2 (Bloomberg) -- Copper fell in London on speculation that slower growth in China will curb demand for industrial metals. Lead declined to a two-year low and aluminum dropped to the lowest in three years.

China’s construction of homes, offices and factories slid at least 16.6 percent in October after rising 32.5 percent a year earlier, according to Macquarie Securities Ltd. Copper has dropped 47 percent this year, the biggest drop since at least 1987 after a housing slump in the U.S. spread to Europe and Asia.

“When you have data coming out that’s as weak as it’s recently been, whether it’s U.S. or China it’s not going to help sentiment,” said Gayle Berry, an analyst at Barclays Capital in London. “Prices are not trading rationally to the fundamentals. It’s a case of how bad can sentiment get.”

Copper for delivery in three months on the London Metal Exchange dropped $45, or 1.3 percent, to $3,545 a metric ton as of 12:02 p.m. local time. The price fell 4.4 percent the past three sessions. Copper futures for March delivery declined 2.85 cents, or 1.8 percent, to $1.6025 a pound on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Automobile Sales

November industrywide auto sales in the U.S., the world’s biggest auto market, may have marked the 13th straight monthly drop. Barclays Capital forecasts copper for immediate delivery will average $4,700 a ton next year, Berry said. It’s averaged $7,290 this year so far.

Copper stockpiles monitored by the LME gained 1,825 tons, or 0.6 percent, to 293,025 tons. They have jumped every month from July.

Lead dropped $18, or 1.6 percent, to $1,082 a ton. Earlier, the price fell to $1,052 a ton, the lowest since July 26, 2006. The metal, used in car batteries, has dropped 57 percent this year. Aluminum extended its drop to a three-year low, falling $15 to $1,720. It earlier fell to $1,705, the lowest since July 7, 2005.

Zinc gained $4 to $1,170 a ton and nickel climbed $100 to $9,900 a ton.

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