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Informist, Tuesday, Feb. 3, 2026

 

By Ashutosh Pati

 

MUMBAI – Futures contracts of copper rebounded on the Multi Commodity Exchange of India Tuesday, following sharp sell-offs in the last three sessions, as Chinese manufacturers bought the metal at lower levels to build inventories ahead of the Lunar New Year on Feb. 17, according to analysts. Market sentiment was also lifted by encouraging US manufacturing data.

 

"The recovery follows a volatile two-day correction, as easing market turbulence encouraged dip-buying, particularly from Chinese manufacturers returning to restock ahead of the Lunar New Year," Kotak Securities said in a report.

 

The recent pullback in COPPER prices was triggered by aggressive profit-taking after prices reached record highs last week. It was further amplified after US President Donald Trump announced the nomination of Kevin Warsh, a former Fed governor, as the next chair of the board of governors of the US central bank. Warsh is viewed as the most hawkish candidate.

 

"Copper was also dragged down in the cross-commodity selloff, with prices now more than 10?low last week's peak. Its fundamentals still look supportive, driven by tight mine supply, constrained growth in key producers, and strong structural demand linked to electrification and AI-related data centre build-outs," analysts at ING said in a report. "The recent price surge has also kept many industrial users on the sidelines, but lower prices should now draw physical buyers back into the market, helping to stabilise demand," they said.

 

Meanwhile, data released Monday showed the US ISM manufacturing Purchasing Managers' Index rose to 52.6 in January, entering expansionary territory for the first time in a year and hitting its highest level since August 2022.

 

At 1815 IST, on the MCX, the February futures contract of:

--ALUMINIUM was at INR 314.95 a kg, up 1.0%
--Copper was at INR 1,288.4 a kg, up 5.7%
–-LEAD was steady at INR 192.00 a kg
–-ZINC was at INR 325.55 a kg, up 0.2%

--NICKEL was at INR 1,575.00 a kg, up 2.9%

 

Trading levels for the day on the MCX:
--Aluminium contract seen at INR 295.00-INR 334.50

--Copper contract seen at INR 1,173.00-INR 1,389.00
--Lead contract seen at INR 183.30-INR 199.90

--Zinc contract seen at INR 305.00-INR 342.30

--Nickel contract seen at INR 1,520.00-INR 1,630.00

End

 

IST, or Indian Standard Time, is five-and-a-half hours ahead of GMT

 

Edited by Saji George Titus

 

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