Melbourne
London copper was little changed on Thursday, but found some support as the dollar eased from four-month highs and ahead of a breakdown of China trade data is expected to offer more insight into its commodity demand.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange traded flat at $4,965 a tonne by 0129 GMT, after a small 0.4 percent loss in the previous session. Shanghai Futures Exchange copper was also steady at 38,480 yuan ($5,764) a tonne. Persistent labour shortages, narrowing profit margins and weak orders pose big challenges to Chinese manufacturers and are a risk to the government´s economic growth target if no additional stimulus is provided, Standard Chartered said. The German economy remains on a solid growth path due to strong domestic demand, but external risks have increased after Britain´s decision to leave the European Union, the Finance Ministry said on Thursday.