News: METALS-Shanghai aluminium prices climb on China GDP, pollution alert

  1. 184,654 Posts.
    lightbulb Created with Sketch. 2711

    (Adds pollution alert, analyst comment; updates prices)

    BEIJING, Jan 19 (Reuters) - Shanghai aluminium prices rose on Friday, buoyed by the first acceleration in China's GDP growth in seven years and by a pollution alert in a major industrial province.

    The climb came even as the country's output of the metal on Thursday posted a surprise jump for December.

    "GDP, industrial production and fixed asset investment all recorded strong growth," ANZ wrote in a note on Friday about the China data. "The (metals) sector was also supported by some supply-side issues."

    Late on Thursday, the city of Zhengzhou, capital of the key aluminium-smelting province of Henan, raised its alert for air pollution to red, the highest level, effective from Friday. That means tighter curbs on output of industrial products, including metals.

    Heavy pollution in the Zhengzhou is expected to last until Jan. 23, according to state news agency Xinhua.

    FUNDAMENTALS

    • SHFE ALUMINIUM: The most-traded aluminium contract SAFcv1 on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (ShFE) was up 0.75 percent at 14,730 yuan ($2,304.08) a tonne at 0518 GMT. It rose more than 1 percent in early trade, but is on course for a weekly drop of 2.5 percent.
    • LME ALUMINIUM: In London, three-month aluminium CMAL3 edged down 0.3 percent to $2,235 a tonne, after ending up 2.2 percent in the previous session.
    • CHINA: China's economy grew faster than expected in the fourth quarter of 2017, as an export recovery helped the country post its first annual acceleration in growth in seven years, defying concerns that intensifying curbs on industry and credit would hurt expansion.
    • ALUMINIUM: China's aluminium production rebounded in December to its highest since June, reversing five months of declines and lifting 2017 output to a record.
    • COPPER: The most-traded March copper contract in Shanghai SCFcv1 was down 0.1 percent at 53,640 a yuan a tonne. Three-month London copper CMCU3 rose 0.3 percent to $7,095 a tonne, building on Thursday's gain of 0.6 percent, after a force majeure in Mongolia.
    • MONGOLIA: The Oyu Tolgoi copper-gold mine in Mongolia's southern Gobi Desert declared force majeure after protests by Chinese coal haulers disrupted deliveries near the border, said majority owner Turquoise Hill TRQ.TO.
    • LEAD: Lead SPBcv1 was the biggest gainer among base metals on the ShFE, rising 1.7 percent to 19,550 yuan a tonne after a red pollution alert in the key production hub of Jiyuan in Henan province.
    • ZINC: Rising supplies of zinc over the next couple of years are unlikely to replenish dwindling inventories to the extent that the market stops fretting about shortages and driving up prices towards the peaks seen in 2007.
    • NICKEL: The global nickel market deficit narrowed to 8,400 tonnes in November from 11,500 tonnes in the previous month, the International Nickel Study Group said on Thursday.

      For the top stories in metals and other news, click [TOP/MTL] or [MET/L]

      MARKETS NEWS

    • Asia stocks edged up to record highs on Friday, although losses on Wall Street slowed the advance, while worries over a possible U.S. government shutdown weighed on the dollar.

    [MKTS/GLOB]

    DATA AHEAD (GMT)

    	0700  Germany	 Producer prices Dec 
    	0900  Euro zone Current account Nov 
    
    	1500  U.S.	  Univ of Michigan sentiment index Jan 
    		 
    		 
    	PRICES	 
    

    BASE METALS PRICES 0518 GMT

     Three month LME copper		CMCU3			 7095 
     Most active ShFE copper	   SCFcv1		   53640 
     Three month LME aluminium	 CMAL3			 2235 
     Most active ShFE aluminium	SAFcv1		   14735 
     Three month LME zinc		  CMZN3		   3385.5 
     Most active ShFE zinc		 SZNcv1		   25970 
     Three month LME lead		  CMPB3		   2605.5 
     Most active ShFE lead		 SPBcv1		   19540 
     Three month LME nickel		CMNI3			12400 
     Most active ShFE nickel	   SNIcv1		   95880 
     Three month LME tin		   CMSN3			20465 
     Most active ShFE tin		  SSNcv1		  144630 
    														
     BASE METALS ARBITRAGE								  
    
     LME/SHFE COPPER			   LMESHFCUc3		718.46 
     LME/SHFE ALUMINIUM			LMESHFALc3	  -1876.65 
    											
     LME/SHFE ZINC				 LMESHFZNc3		376.56 
     LME/SHFE LEAD				 LMESHFPBc3	   -587.33 
     LME/SHFE NICKEL			   LMESHFNIc3	   2579.19 
    											
    ($1 = 6.3930 Chinese yuan renminbi) 
    
    	<^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^ 
    Top base and precious metals analysis - GFMS	 http://tmsnrt.rs/2lvmIzW 
    
    	^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^>                    
 
arrow-down-2 Created with Sketch. arrow-down-2 Created with Sketch.