Copper Drops to $7,070.50 a Tonne on China Demand Concerns

Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange fell $84.50 to $7,070.50 a tonne on Monday, according to Reuters. The metal hit a low of $7,033 earlier in the session, the lowest price since February 6.

Growth in housing prices in China slowed in January, and possible credit restrictions in the country have impacted the demand outlook for copper. China is the source of more than 40 percent of the world’s demand for copper, so its economic state is important to the copper market.

“That was the main reason why we saw weakness in copper but also across the board in base metals,” Vicky Sanders, head of analytics sales at Marex Spectron, told Reuters of the Chinese housing data. “It was only a small change month on month but it’s really about momentum.”

Copper for March delivery on New York’s Comex was down $0.0415 or 1.3 percent to $3.2495 a pound on Monday, according to The Wall Street Journal.