Copper update: slower demand raises caution

It might be time to pull out the Mercedes commercial from several years ago where the tagline stated, “Perception is not always reality.” Trading this week in the precious and base metals clearly personifies this statement.

Copper prices were rebounding on Monday, helped initially by a weaker U.S. dollar and a decline in Shanghai stockpiles to a five-month low. CPI and import data from China due out on Tuesday should give the market a sense of demand and will likely provide the direction of trade. Thus far, global data has led to the conclusion that overall demand has slowed.