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London copper prices fell to an eight-and-a-half month low on Monday, weighed down by a strong dollar and worries that a potential global recession would dent demand for metals.
Fundamentals
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was down 0.1 per cent at $8,955 a tonne by 0242 GMT, after falling to its lowest since Oct. 1 in early Asian trade.
The most-traded July copper contract in Shanghai fell 1.6 per cent to 68,460 yuan ($10,233.49) a tonne..
China stood pat on its benchmark lending rates for corporate and household loans, as expected, on Monday, with global central banks' rate increases making it tough for Beijing to stimulate a weak domestic economy by lowering rates.
The dollar index hovered near its highest level in about two decades, making greenback-priced metals more expensive for overseas buyers.
Last week, major central banks, including the U.S. Federal Reserve, hiked interest rates to contain soaring inflation and re-ignited worries that they will tip the world into recession.
Peru's economic growth is likely to be slightly lower this year, according to a new forecast by the central bank, following disruptions to major mining projects in the Andean nation, the world's second-biggest copper producer.
Workers at Chilean state-owned miner Codelco, the world's largest copper producer, said on Saturday they would start preparations for a national strike after the firm announced the closure of the troubled Ventanas smelter.
China's aluminium imports in May fell 16.4 per cent from the same month a year earlier, government data showed on Saturday, amid high overseas prices and weaker domestic consumption.
The LME approved rules on Friday for members to report all over the counter (OTC) positions, a move taken after off-exchange trading was partly blamed for a wild spike in nickel prices in March.
China's refined copper production in May rose 4.7 per cent year-on-year to 0.91 million tonnes, data from the National Bureau of Statistics showed on Friday.
Markets news
Asian shares were unable to sustain a rare rally as Wall Street futures shed early gains amid worries the U.S. Federal Reserve would this week underline its commitment to fighting inflation with whatever rate hikes were needed.
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