India Base Metals
Most up as dollar at near-5-mo low, fall in LME stocks
This story was originally published at 17:33 IST on 11 March 2025
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By Ashutosh Pati
MUMBAI – Futures contracts of most base metals rose on the Multi Commodity Exchange of India Tuesday, tracking a rise in contracts on the London Metal Exchange as the dollar index fell to a near-five-month low. Market sentiment was also lifted by a fall in inventories of the metals, except zinc, at warehouses registered with the LME.
At 1614 IST, the dollar index, which measures the strength of the greenback against a basket of six major currencies, was down 0.3% at 103.61. A weaker greenback makes dollar-denominated commodities such as base metals cheaper for buyers holding other currencies.
ALUMINIUM inventories fell by 4,050 tonnes to 502,150 tonnes and COPPER inventories fell by 9,150 tonnes to 244,175 tonnes. LEAD stocks fell by 1,650 tonnes to 203,250 tonnes. ZINC inventories, however, rose by 1,725 tonnes to 161,825 tonnes.
Concerns about demand amid weaker-than-expected economic data from China and the US capped the gains in prices. China's CPI was down 0.7% on year in February, according to China's National Bureau of Statistics. On a monthly basis, the CPI dropped 0.2%. Additionally, China's Producer Price Index fell in February, slipping 2.2% on year, against a fall of 2.3% in January.
"Despite Beijing's assurances of policy support, concerns persist over China's sluggish domestic demand and escalating trade tensions with the US," Kotak Securities said in a report. Data released by the US Bureau of Labor Statistics showed US non-farm payrolls increased by 151,000 in February, after the 125,000 increase reported in January. This figure was weaker than the market expectation of 160,000.
For further cues, market participants await the US Job Openings and Labor Turnover Survey data, due later in the day.
At 1626 IST, on the MCX, the March futures contract of:
–Aluminium was at INR 265.25 a kg, up 0.2%
–Copper was at INR 885.70 a kg, up 1.1%
–LEAD was at INR 182.45 a kg, down 0.1%
–ZINC was at INR 274.65 a kg, up 1.2%
Trading levels for the day on the MCX:
-Aluminium contract seen at INR 261.70-268.70
-Copper contract seen at INR 867.90-895.60
-Lead contract seen at INR 180.00-184.00
-Zinc contract seen at INR 269.60-278.90
End
US$1 = INR 87.21
IST, or Indian Standard Time, is five-and-a-half hours ahead of GMT
Edited by Rajeev Pai
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