Chinese Demand Brings LME Zinc Out of 10-session Slump

Bloomberg reported that today, London Metal Exchange (LME) zinc for delivery in three months rose 0.8 percent, to $1,968 per ton, breaking a 10-session losing streak. The uptick came on the back of speculation that growing Chinese zinc demand will reduce supply of the metal.

As quoted in the market news:

Mitsui Mining & Smelting Co., Japan’s top zinc producer, raised annual charges to overseas buyers by as much as 70 percent amid rising Chinese consumption, compared with a 15 percent gain last year. China’s imports of zinc concentrate climbed 24 percent in December from a year earlier, customs data show.

‘China is the biggest consumer of everything including metals,’ Michael Smith, the president of T&K Futures & Options Inc. in Port St. Lucie, Florida, said in a telephone interview. ‘Any time they’re buying, that’s always a bullish factor because it reduces supply.’

Click here to read the full Bloomberg report.