MELBOURNE, March 26 (Reuters) - London metals extended their
declines on Monday as concerns over U.S.-China trade relations
continued to batter global stocks and threaten to blunt the
demand for metals.
U.S. President Donald Trump signed a memorandum on Friday
that could impose tariffs on up to $60 billion of imports from
China, although the measures have a 30-day consultation period
before they take effect.
"The announcement that President Trump would apply a 25
percent tariff on $50 billion of Chinese goods, including items
in aerospace, information technology and machinery, continued to
reverberate through the market," Australia's ANZ Bank said in a
report.
"China's response only strengthened the view that global
economic growth could be affected by this escalation in trade
tension."
FUNDAMENTALS
* LME COPPER: London Metal Exchange copper was down
1.3 percent at $6,575 a tonne, as of 0721 GMT, adding to losses
from the previous session. Prices earlier dropped to $6,532 a
tonne, their weakest since early December.
* SHFE COPPER: Shanghai Futures Exchange copper
dropped 2.5 percent to 49,000 yuan ($7,785.69) a tonne by close,
hitting the lowest since July at 48,720 yuan.
* Open interest in LME copper, a measure of activity in the
global contract, fell to its lowest in more than two years last
week. In Shanghai, however, open interest has jumped since
mid-January to three-year highs, suggesting large short
positions have been building in China.
* "I am overall bearish everything," said a metals trader in
Singapore, adding that copper was possibly facing a downside
move after the break of some key chart levels.
* LME copper closed below the 200-day moving average on
Friday sending a "sell" signal to momentum following funds.
* Other Shanghai metals slipped towards fresh multi-month
lows. Shfe nickel dropped 3 percent at 9,6360 yuan a
tonne by close, Shanghai aluminium slipped half a
percent to a nearly 17-month trough, while Shanghai lead
closed down 0.9 percent.
* CHINA ECONOMY: China will steadily reform and further open
its financial sector while putting "equal emphasis" on
preventing risks through regulation and supervision, the new
central bank governor said on Sunday.
* SPECULATORS: Hedge funds and money managers cut their net
long positions in COMEX gold and copper contracts in the week to
March 20, the latest regulatory data showed.
* DRC: Democratic Republic of Congo's mines minister
rejected a proposal by mining companies on Friday to soften some
provisions in a new mining code in exchange for higher
royalties.
* SMOG: Beijing and 33 other northern Chinese cities have
issued smog alerts for the next few days as industrial output
ramps up again after the end of winter restrictions, China's
environment ministry said on Sunday.
* SUPPLY: Supply concerns eased as Chile's state copper
miner Codelco said it had reached an agreement with a union at
its Ministro Hales mine in northern Chile, following early talks
on a new collective labor contract.
