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Dollar firmer, copper sags due to tariff tension

Dollar firmer, copper sags due to tariff tension

The copper prices fell on Friday, as the stronger dollar and uncertainty over demand overshadowed the optimism that China and the United States were trying to curb their trade war.

By 0940 GMT, the benchmark copper price on London Metal Exchange was down by 0.4% to $9360 per metric tonne. The metal reached a high of $9,481.50 in the first half of this week, its highest level since April 3. It was on track for a gain over the entire week.

News broke on Friday indicating that China had granted exemptions to its 125% tariffs for certain U.S. imported goods and asked businesses to identify the products that might be eligible.

Scott Bessent, the U.S. Treasury secretary, said earlier in the week that the high tariffs between both countries were not sustainable.

It's difficult to predict where this trade war will go. Nitesh Sharma, commodity strategist at WisdomTree, said that there's a negotiation going on, but it isn't an easy one.

In the short-term, we don't really know how much the trade war will affect demand. "I'm not surprised that we are having a little bit of a bad day."

The Shanghai Futures Exchange's (SHFE) most-traded contract for copper fell by 0.3%, to 77440 yuan (10,682.66) per ton.

SHFE reported on Friday that copper inventories in warehouses under its surveillance fell by 32% during the past week.

Two traders say that the steep fall in copper prices was caused by consumers selling stocks they had bought several weeks ago when the price of copper fell sharply after President Donald Trump's new tariffs.

Reports on Thursday indicated that the sharp declines of SHFE stocks had triggered fears of a possible short squeeze.

The dollar's rise, fueled by signs of eased tariff tensions, has weighed on the metals markets, making dollar-priced goods more expensive for buyers who use other currencies.

Other metals saw a 0.1% drop in LME aluminium to $2447 per ton. Zinc fell 1% to 2,662, Lead dropped 0.4% to 1,951.50 and Nickel slipped 0.8% to $15,690. Tin gained 1.5% at $32,250. (Reporting and editing by William Maclean, Additional reporting by Mohi Nrayan from New Delhi and Lewis Jackson from Beijing)

(source: Reuters)