US likely to pressurize industrial metals prices: N Bang

Industrial metals prices edged higher with Copper rose to a two-week high yesterday, gaining almost 2 percent on expectations that China could announce further monetary easing and better economic sentiment amid rallies in commodities led by crude oil.

The U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission has extended the consultation period on JP Morgan Chase & Co's controversial plan for an exchanged-traded fund (ETF) physically backed by copper amid mounting opposition from U.S. consumers of the metal.

India's state-run National Aluminium Co said on Thursday it has sold 12,000 tonnes of aluminium ingots at close to $223 per tonne premium over the average LME cash price on a cost, insurance and freight (CIF) basis.

South Africa's National Union of Mineworkers (NUM) said on Thursday it was preparing to strike at Nkomati, a nickel mine jointly owned by African Rainbow Mineral's and Russia's Norilsk Nkomati mine is situated in Machadodorp in Mpumalanga and produced 10,100 tonnes of nickel in 2011.

The global nickel market was in supply surplus by 27,000 tonnes in the first five months of 2012, the latest monthly bulletin from Lisbon-based International Nickel Study Group (INSG) showed.

Iron ore inventories in China reached a record high of about 100 million metric tons due to shrinking downstream demand, but major global suppliers are still increasing output.

Industrial metals prices are trading weak on international bourses today. A strong dollar overseas backed by weak economic data by the US is likely to further pressurize prices of industrial metals for the day.

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