Oct 10 (Reuters) - Prices of most nonferrous metals declined on Tuesday, weighed down by a sombre economic growth outlook in the upcoming quarters, rising inventories and a generally firmer dollar.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) fell 0.5% to $8,064.50 per metric ton by 0524 GMT, while the most-traded November copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange shed 0.9% to 66,750 yuan ($9,159.39) per ton.
Chinese have been buying the dip after a long holiday break, but they were hit with the reality of slowing macroeconomic growth that is likely to decelerate further, said Sandeep Daga, a director at metals analysis company Metal Intelligence Centre.
"As Chinese appetite wanes, the slippage will get stronger," with LME copper prices likely to hit $7,600 a ton in the near term and dropping further to $7,200 this year, Daga added.
The dollar is on a roll and may continue for some time, and visible metals inventories are rising, Daga said.
The dollar index softened on Tuesday, but year-to-date it has risen 2.5%. A firm dollar makes greenback-priced metals more expensive to holders of other currencies.
However, copper is the
top bet
for base metals in 2024, as per an informal poll at an LME event this week, and Chinese demand for copper has been
resilient
lately.
LME aluminium fell 0.4% to $2,233.50 a ton, tin shed 1.6% to $24,750, nickel declined 0.7% to $18,815, zinc lost 0.9% to $2,489.50 and lead decreased 0.4% to $2,122.50.
SHFE aluminium declined 1% to 19,065 yuan a ton, zinc dropped 2.4% to 21,345 yuan, lead shed 1.9% to 16,415 yuan, tin fell 1.4% to 210,850 yuan, while nickel rose 1.6% to 152,020 yuan.
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($1 = 7.2876 yuan) (Reporting by Mai Nguyen in Hanoi; Editing by Nivedita Bhattacharjee ad Eileen Soreng)
