METALS-Shanghai copper rises on Chile supply concerns

May 21 (Reuters) - Shanghai copper rose on Thursday as top producer Chile lowered its production forecast, while London prices slipped after a sharp gain in the previous session.

The most-active copper contract SCFcv1 on the Shanghai Futures Exchange gained 1.38% to 104,980 yuan ($15,441.19) a metric ton by 0235 GMT.

Benchmark three-month copper CMCU3 on the London Metal Exchange dipped 0.19% to $13,630 a ton, following a 1.82% rebound on Wednesday.

A rally in the dollar =USD paused after U.S. President Donald Trump expressed willingness to wait to "get the right answer" for a peace deal with Iran and said the war was in the final stage.

He said the United States was also ready to proceed with further attacks if Iran did not agree to a peace deal.

A weaker dollar makes greenback-priced metals cheaper for holders of other currencies.

Two Chinese tankers with a total of around 4 million barrels of oil, meanwhile, crossed the Strait of Hormuz, which remained largely shut by Iran.

Chile's production is projected to fall 2.0% in 2026 to 5.3 million tons before recovering 4.0% in 2027.

Lower ore grades, scheduled maintenance, operational constraints and weak performance at the start of the year are seen as the reasons for the 2026 forecast downgrade.

Elsewhere, the recovery of PT Freeport Indonesia's Grasberg mine is taking longer than expected, but operations should approach full capacity by the end of 2027, its chief executive told Reuters.

Among other SHFE metals, aluminium SAFcv1 rose 0.41%, zinc SZNcv1 jumped 1.43%, lead SPBcv1 climbed 1.22%, nickel SNIcv1 shed 0.41% and tin SSNcv1 surged 3.33%.

On the LME, aluminium CMAL3 was little changed, zinc CMZN3 ticked 0.01% higher, lead CMPB3 gained 0.51%, nickel CMNI3 declined 0.73% and tin SSNcv1 nudged 0.05% lower.


Thursday, May 21

DATA/EVENTS (GMT)

0715 France HCOB Mfg, Services, Composite Flash PMI May

0730 Germany HCOB Mfg, Services, Composite Flash PMI May

0800 EU HCOB Mfg, Services, Composite Flash PMI May

0830 UK Flash Manufacturing, Services, Composite PMI May

1230 US Housing Starts Number Apr

1230 US Initial Jobless Clm May 16, w/e

1230 US Philly Fed Business Indx May

1345 US S&P Global Mfg, Scvc, Comp PMI Flash May

1400 EU Consumer Confid. Flash May


($1 = 6.7987 Chinese yuan)


This page is machine-translated. Sahm tries to improve but does not guarantee the accuracy and reliability of the translation, and will not be liable for any loss or damage caused by any inaccuracy or omission of the translation. *Disclaimer: The above content only represents the author's personal position and opinion and does not represent any position of Sahm Capital Financial Company and Sahm cannot confirm the authenticity, accuracy, and originality of the above content. Investors should consider the risks of investment products in light of their circumstances before making any investment decisions. When necessary, please consult a professional investment advisor. Sahm does not provide any investment advice, nor does it make any commitments and guarantees.