Copper falls, set to snap six-week win streak on demand concerns

Business Recorder reported that copper slipped on Friday, putting its streak of weekly advances, the longest since 2020, at risk of ending. Concerns about demand for the metal and the wider industrial metals group weighed on prices. The three-month contract on the London Metal Exchange slid 0.56 per cent to $14,069 per metric ton as of 0300 GMT.

The metal was on course to finish the week close to where it began, after six straight weekly rises. Shanghai's most-traded contract also eased, down 0.33 per cent at 107,460 yuan ($15,935.82) a ton. Fastmarkets analyst Andy Farida questioned whether base metal demand could keep its recent momentum, given fast asset price gains and subdued wage growth.

Mild US inflation figures lowered the chance of a Federal Reserve rate increase next month, though slower economic activity could still weigh on industrial metals. According to CME's FedWatch tool, traders put the odds of a September hike at 41 per cent, down from 44 per cent last Friday. Aluminium was the weakest performer, falling 0.98 per cent on the LME, while zinc, lead, nickel and tin also dipped.