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CME copper near record highs as shorts roll positions forward

Copper prices on the Chicago Mercantile Exchange hovered near record highs on Thursday as purchasers piled in anticipating further gains due to sellers not being able to provide the metal versus their positions and having to roll them forward.

CME copper struck a record high of $5.1775 a lb, or $ 11,414 a metric ton on Wednesday. It was down 1.4% at $4.9025 a. lb at 1606 GMT on Thursday.

One trader stated those with brief positions had actually chosen to. hold off closing their positions beyond June. Brief positions. can be bets on lower prices, or producers selling their output. for a future period.

However the expenses of rolling over positions will increase, as CME. has raised the margin requirement for trading copper futures in. a transfer to relax market volatility.

Commodity traders consisting of Trafigura and IXM, in addition to. Chinese producers, are among those caught in the short squeeze. They are wanting to buy copper in the physical market to provide. versus the CME contract.

Significant copper consumers have actually been approached to sell back. their inventory, one such customer told .

CME copper has risen 27% up until now this year, exceeding gains. on the London Metal Exchange (LME) and creating a chance. for traders to buy on the LME and sell on the CME.

However moving metals from one exchange to the other would be. hard, as half of the readily available copper in the LME system is of. Russian origin and can not be provided into the CME.

Benchmark copper on the LME was up 1.9% at $10,417 a. ton, rising 22% up until now this year.

For other metals, aluminium stocks increased to their highest. considering that October 2021 with a significant shipment to storage facilities kept an eye on. by the LME in Malaysia. << MALSTX-TOTAL > The increase is because of

so-called rent-deals set up. in between storage facilities and traders.

Aluminium last traded 0.4% lower at $2,589.5 a ton.

Nickel rose 2.5% to $19,970, lead was also. up 1% at $2,292, tin got 1.2% to $33,800, while zinc. lost 0.5% to $2,962.

Restricting metals rates was also a more powerful U.S. dollar .

The greenback

gotten strength

after higher import costs that point to inflation. A. Federal Reserve authorities said they were

not ready

for a rates of interest cut soon.

(source: Reuters)