Copper price falls with China absent for Lunar New Year

The copper price fell for a second day on Wednesday, weighed down by a stronger dollar and the absence of China, where markets are closed for a week-long Lunar New Year holiday.

Copper for delivery in March on the Comex market in New York, was down 0.4% Wednesday morning, touching $4.23 per pound ($9,306 per tonne).

[Click here for an interactive chart of copper prices]

Copper rallied strongly in early January, reaching a seven-month high of $9,550.50 a tonne on January 18, as the dollar weakened and speculators bet that the end of China’s covid-19 restrictions would boost economic growth and metals demand.

But prices lost momentum as Chinese markets closed on January 20.

The market is waiting for data from China after its New Year celebrations, said WisdomTree commodity strategist Nitesh Shah.

“(This) could be a nice catalyst for prices to break away from this consolidation range,” he said.

Even if Chinese growth revives, the global economy is expected to face a challenging year marked by geopolitical tensions, high inflation, and the energy crisis, according to the Eurochambres global economic survey published on Wednesday.

(With files from Reuters)