Copper steady near $9,900 as traders eye supply, China data

[Pile of Scrap Copper Rod]
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Copper prices hovered just below $10,000 a ton on the London Metal Exchange on Wednesday, supported by supply risks in Indonesia and signs of easing deflation in China’s manufacturing sector.

Freeport-McMoRan (FCX [https://seekingalpha.com/symbol/FCX]) halted output at its Grasberg mine, the world’s second-largest copper deposit, after an incident left several workers trapped. The company said crews are working to reach them and the employees are believed safe. Analysts noted that short disruptions have little effect on global supply, but extended outages could tighten an already constrained market, Bloomberg News reported.

On the demand side, Chinese data showed factory deflation eased for the first time in six months, offering tentative relief for an economy that has faced persistent price declines and excess industrial capacity.

As of late morning in London, copper edged up 0.2% to $9,929 a ton. Other base metals were little changed, with zinc and tin posting modest gains.

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