Copper Futures Rise Most in a Week in New York on Strike by Mexico Workers

(Bloomberg) -- Copper futures in New York jumped
the most in more than a week after Southern Copper Corp. workers
went on strike at three mines in Mexico.

Employees began a work stoppage at Cananea, Mexico's
largest copper mine, and the Taxco and San Martin zinc mines, a
union spokeswoman said yesterday. Copper has gained 10 percent
since May 30 as labor unrest hampered production in Latin
American countries.


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Copper Rises in Asia Trade on Mexican Labor Unrest; Zinc, Aluminum Advance

(Bloomberg) -- Copper futures in Asia rose after
workers at Southern Copper Corp., the world's fifth-largest
producer of the metal, began a strike at three of the company's
Mexican mines to demand wage increases.

Employees stopped work at Cananea, Mexico's largest copper
mine, and the Taxco and San Martin zinc mines, National Mining
and Metal Workers Union spokeswoman Carmen Romero said yesterday.


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Metals steady as credit risks balance strike action

(Reuters) - Copper steadied on Friday as fears of credit risk in global markets were balanced by industrial action in the world's top copper producer.

Asian shares lost ground, tracking overnight losses in Wall Street as fears grew that a U.S. housing fallout might trigger a global credit crunch.


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Platinum Futures Drop in Tokyo Trading as Stock Rout Cuts Risk Appetite

(Bloomberg) -- Platinum futures fell in Tokyo for a
fifth day as a rout in global equities and declines in prices for
other commodities dulled investors' demand for risk.

Asian stocks fell the most in four months on concern a
worsening U.S. housing recession would damp global growth. Copper
declined for a fourth session in New York, the longest slump in
more than a month, while crude oil had its biggest plunge in four
months yesterday.


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Metals steady but vulnerable on firm dollar, stocks

(Reuters) - Copper steadied on Thursday but analysts saw more downside risk as the dollar held on to gains and inventories rose, while nickel prices were volatile.

Copper for delivery in three months on the London Metal Exchange was at $7,820 a tonne at 0903 GMT, $42 up from Wednesday when it fell 2.4 percent on dollar strength.


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Zambia copper output to rise to 1.2 mln in 2009

(Reuters) - Zambia's total finished copper output will hit 1.2 million tonnes in 2009, against a previous forecast that said the country would produce 1 million tonnes in 2011, a senior industry official said.

Tim Henderson, the Chief Executive Officer of Mopani Copper Mines (MCM), said production of copper would rise faster than expected because the life of the vast copper and cobalt mines had risen due to exploration and modern mining technologies.


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Nickel Declines for Fourth Day in London as Steel Mills Cut Production

(Bloomberg) -- Nickel fell for a fourth consecutive
session because stainless-steel mills, the biggest user, are
cutting production, reducing demand for the metal. Copper and
aluminium prices were little changed.

Posco, Asia's third-largest steelmaker, will reduce
stainless-steel output by as much as 100,000 metric tons in the
second half, the company said yesterday. Nickel usage already
lagged behind production by 8,300 tons as of May, Michael Widmer,
head of metals research at Calyon said, citing data from the
International Nickel Study Group.


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Copper Falls as Global Inventories Increase for First Time in Three Weeks

(Bloomberg) -- Copper fell to the lowest in eight
sessions in New York as global inventories of the metal rose for
the first time in three weeks.

Stockpiles in warehouses monitored by the London Metal
Exchange gained 1,325 metric tons, or 1.4 percent, to 98,875
tons, the first increase since June 25. Before today, copper had
increased 25 percent this year as inventories plunged 47 percent.


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Zambia's Konkola agrees to wage deal with miners

(Reuters) - Zambia's Konkola Copper Mines (KCM) has signed a new labour deal that will give its unionised workers a 20-percent salary increase, a union official said on Friday.

Albert Mando, the general secretary of the National Union of Allied and Mining Workers (Numaw), said workers agreed to the deal after the company, majority-owned by London-based Vedanta Resources, raised its wage offer from 16 percent.


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Shanghai Copper Falls For Third Day Amid Speculation Stockpiles to Rise

(Bloomberg) -- Copper prices fell for a third day in
Shanghai on speculation that local stockpiles of the metal
increased, adding to concern that China may take time to absorb
supply following higher-than-expected imports last month.

Shanghai copper stockpiles, which have been falling since
reaching a three-year high on June 14, may rise, as a deadline
for delivery against the expiring July futures contract
approaches. The Shanghai Futures Exchange will release this
week's data later today. China is also expected to issue June
import and output figures for refined copper early next week.


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Copper Gains in New York After Chilean Strike Halts Output for Second Day

(Bloomberg) -- Copper gained in New York after
production was halted for a second day at a unit of Codelco, the
world's biggest producer of the metal.

Codelco stopped output at its Andina division in central
Chile yesterday after a worker was injured by protesters throwing
rocks, the company said. The mine accounts for about 14 percent
of Codelco's production. Copper has gained 8.4 percent in the
last month amid labor unrest in major producing countries
including Chile, the biggest source of the metal.


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Copper Rises to Two-Month High as Chilean Mine Strike Threatens Supplies

(Bloomberg) -- Copper rose to a two-month high in
New York after union workers went on strike at a mine in Chile,
the world's largest producer of the metal.

The protest will cut output at Dona Ines de Collahuasi,
Chile's third-largest copper mine, union treasurer Pedro Diaz
said today in a telephone interview. Supply disruptions helped
push copper to a record high in May 2006. The price gained
4.2 percent last week.


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Copper Rises in Asia on Labor Disputes, Low Stockpiles; Zinc, Aluminum Up

(Bloomberg) -- Copper prices rose in Asia on concern
about supply shortages as labor unrest in Latin America threatens
to further deplete global stockpiles that are at their lowest
since December.

Contract workers at Chile's Codelco, the world's biggest
copper miner, have been on strike since June 25, while a union at
Dona Ines de Collahuasi, Chile's third-largest mine, plans to
begin a walkout today. Inventories tracked by exchanges in London,
New York and Shanghai shrank 7.4 percent last week to 208,636
metric tons, the equivalent of five days of global use.


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Copper Heads for Second Weekly Advance as Supply Falls; Nickel Declines

(Bloomberg) -- Copper headed for a second straight
weekly gain in London on speculation demand will exceed supplies
amid stockpile declines and labor disputes at mines in Chile,
the largest source of the metal. Nickel fell for a fifth week.

Inventories tracked by commodity exchanges in London, New
York and Shanghai shrank 7.4 percent this week to 208,636 metric
tons, the equivalent of five days of global use. Contract
workers at Chile's Codelco, the biggest copper producer, have
been on strike since June 25. Miners at Dona Ines de Collahuasi,
Chile's third-biggest copper mine, are demanding higher wages.


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Copper easier but supply fears haunt market

(Reuters) - Copper eased on Friday as speculators took profits, but analysts expect tight supplies and strike threats to boost prices over coming days.

Copper for three months delivery on the London Metal Exchange was at 0940 GMT slightly lower at $7,840/7,850 a tonne from Thursday's close at $7,860. Earlier it hit an eight-week high of $7,880.


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Copper Rises to Six-Week High in New York as Inventories, Dollar Decline

(Bloomberg) -- Copper rose in New York to the
highest in six weeks on speculation a decline in the value of
the dollar will boost demand for the metal used in wiring and
plumbing as inventories dwindle.

Copper stockpiles monitored by the London Metal Exchange
fell 1.8 percent to an eight-month low of 112,600 metric tons,
the exchange said today. Copper, sold in dollars, has risen
22 percent this year as inventories fell 38 percent and the U.S.
currency fell 2.6 percent against a basket of six major world
currencies. The dollar today touched the lowest level in more
than a month against the euro.


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Chile's Peso Weakens a Fourth Day on Lower-Than-Expected Industrial Output

(Bloomberg) -- Chile's peso dropped for a fourth
day after the country's industrial production grew less than
expected and copper fell.

Industrial production rose 3 percent in May from a year
ago, lower than the 4.9 percent median forecast from 11 analysts
in a Bloomberg survey. Copper, the country's biggest export,
fell on concern of slowing growth in the U.S., the world's
second-largest consumer of the metal.


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Canada's Dollar Declines Versus U.S. as Oil Falls, Dims Growth Outlook

(Bloomberg) -- The Canadian dollar fell against the
U.S. currency as crude oil declined, dimming the prospect of the
country's economy.

Commodities including oil make up half of Canada's exports.
Copper and platinum also dropped today. The Canadian currency
dropped for a third day against the yen, the longest losing
streaks since March, as investors pared holdings of riskier
assets funded by loans in Japan, known as the carry trade.


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Shanghai Copper Falls to Three-Month Low on U.S. Demand Concern; Zinc Down

(Bloomberg) -- Copper prices fell for the fourth day
in Asia on concern consumption may be slowing in the U.S., the
world's second largest user of the metal.

U.S. new-home purchases dropped in May, signaling demand is
still dwindling in the second year of a housing slump. Builders
are the biggest consumers of the metal, which also came under
pressure from speculation that China may raise interest rates for
the third time this year.


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Copper Futures Decline Amid Signs of Slower Metal Demand in China, U.S.

(Bloomberg) -- Copper declined in New York on signs
that consumption may be slowing in China, the world's largest
user of the metal, and the U.S., the second-biggest.

China's copper imports in May fell 37 percent from April,
an indication that domestic supplies are more than adequate.
U.S. new-home purchases dropped in May, signaling demand is
still dwindling in the second year of the housing slump.
Builders are the biggest consumers of the metal. Copper, used in
pipes and wires, fell 1.1 percent last week.


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