Base metals took off last week, with some making multi-year highs, while others are still challenging previous peaks. Zinc was the star performer with a gain of 10.5 cents on the week, putting it about 36% over the year ago price. We have to go back to Oct. 2007 when it was last at this level.
Spot copper on Comex rose to a mid-week high close of $2.9545, and finished Friday at $2.94, just a tad below its first line of resistance. And the mystery of the August / September backwardation remains in place, despite another 3,800 MT going into Cx warehouses.
In the precious metals sector, palladium climbed to its highest level since 2001, but the rest of the group hasn’t done much of late. And the same goes for energy, as crude remains stuck in a narrow range, while natural gas hovers around the $3.00 level, with both in negative territory thus far this year.
And finally, its time again to keep an eye on equities as evidenced by the S&P 500 slipping below its first line of support.
John Gross publisher of The Copper Journal and is one of the metals' industry's best resources on copper pricing trends.
If you would like to learn more about how to manage your wire and cable inventory in this volatile market environment, email John at by clicking here or calling him at 631-824-6486.
