Posted on 07 Aug 2023
The central government's recent pledge to bolster China's economy gave a further lift to the country's nonferrous market during the week of July 31-August 4, with the most-traded futures contracts of the major nonferrous metals including copper, aluminum and nickel on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) all moving higher on week.
The exchange's data shows that by Friday, SHFE copper for September delivery had climbed higher by Yuan 500/tonne ($69.6/t) from last Friday's settlement price to close the daytime session at Yuan 69,350/t, while the September aluminum price had gained Yuan 125/t on week to close at Yuan 18,500/t. Similarly, the exchange's nickel contract – also for September delivery – had jumped Yuan 700/t to close at Yuan 169,970/t during the same period.
During the week, the mood among nonferrous market players in China remained positive, mainly due to their heightened expectations for an economic revival after the government had announced a variety of new stimulus policies. For example, more financial support will be made available for private firms in the future, a meeting of the People's Bank of China decided on Thursday.
Despite the cheering tone, the impact of the follow-up policies still needs further observation, market sources warned on Friday, adding that the market is also waiting for more US economic data to be released later this week which will almost certainly impact China's nonferrous market.
On Friday too, inventories of aluminum and nickel at the SHFE's registered bonded and normal warehouses had both gained on week, with the former up by 1,811 tonnes to 112,807 tonnes and the latter rising by 276 tonnes to sit at 3,113 tonnes.
In contrast, copper stocks posted an on-week slide of 9,138 tonnes to reach 52,134 tonnes the same day.
Source:Mysteel Global
