Commodities Trading Outlook: Gold, silver and copper futures

Copper futures declined on Tuesday after advancing the most in a week yesterday, following comments by managers of the biggest copper mining companies that they were confident the Chinese economy will expand in line with analysts estimates this year and demand in the country, which is the biggest consumer of the metal will accelerate soon. Meanwhile, gold touched the strongest level in two weeks, while silver also advanced.

On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, copper futures for settlement in May fell by 0.1% to trade at $3.037 a pound by 14:02 GMT. Prices shifted in a daily range between $3.062 and $3.026 a pound. The contract added 1.1% yesterday, the biggest daily gain since March 28. The metal plunged 0.6 percent last week, capping the first loss in three weeks.

Antofagasta Plcs Chief Executive Officer Diego Hernandez said yesterday, cited by Bloomberg, that China will meet its 7.5% economic growth target, while his colleague Stefan Boel, a member of Aurubis’ board, the second-largest refined copper producer said, cited by the same media, that the recent slowdown in purchases can be seen as “a little bit of a pause” as Chinese reduce supplies and he is not nervous about this, because “China is going to grow again.”

Prices of the red metal are 9.3% lower since the start of the year, touching the weakest level since July 2010 last month, on concern a slowdown in China will damp global demand, at a time when global supplies are starting to pile.

According to data compiled by the metals researcher CRU, the global surplus of copper may reach 140 000 tons in 2014, almost four times larger than previously estimated as demand in the biggest consumer, China, slows.

Last week, a separate report by the International Copper Study Group showed an even bigger projected global surplus of 400 000 tons as demand lags behind the output growth.

Meanwhile, on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, gold futures for settlement in June surged by 0.9% to trade at $ 1 309.80 an ounce by 14:02 GMT. Prices shifted in a daily range between $1 314.70 an ounce, the strongest since March 26, and $1 297.20 an ounce. The precious metal settled last week 0.6 percent higher, snapping two straight 5-day periods of declines.

Elsewhere on the Comex, silver futures for May delivery rose by 0.8 percent to trade at $20.068 an ounce by 14:03 GMT. Platinum futures for July delivery added 0.81 percent to trade at $1 439.65 an ounce. Palladium futures for June delivery traded at $774.90 an ounce, gaining 0.94 percent. The metal has risen 8% this year on concern more sanctions by the US and the EU on Russia and a strike at South African mines may reduce supplies. The two countries are the biggest producers of palladium.