Farallon Resources Ltd. (fka FRLIF)

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Zinc Jumps, Copper Climbs as China Pledges to Maintain Policy Stability;
By Bloomberg News - Jul 28, 2010 12:44 AM PT

Copper climbed, reversing earlier losses, as China’s pledge to maintain policy stability improved investors’ risk appetite for raw-material investment. Aluminum, lead, nickel, zinc and tin gained.

Copper for three-month delivery rose as much as 1.8 percent to $7,185 a metric ton on the London Metal Exchange and traded at $7,175 at 3:13 p.m. in Shanghai.

China will maintain moderately loose monetary policy in the second half, Zhang Tao, head of the central bank’s survey and statistics department, wrote in yesterday’s Economic Daily newspaper. President Hu Jintao and Premier Wen Jiabao pledged last week to maintain policy stability for the rest of the year after measures to rein in property prices and bank lending eased second-quarter growth.

“Investors feel bolder now, with the government’s policy stance,” Ni Yaoxiang, an analyst at Guojin Futures Co., said from Shanghai today. “There has always been quite a lot of money around looking for investment. It’s just that people want to be cautious after China took some tightening measures.”

Japan’s output of copper and copper-alloy fabricated products rose for the eighth straight month as the country’s export-led economy expanded, an industry group said today. The country’s shipments of rolled-aluminum products increased for a seventh month, as the economic recovery improved demand for the metal used in cars and houses.

Power Outage

Copper also rose as Chile’s second electricity outage in less than two weeks disrupted mines owned by Codelco and Antofagasta Plc.

Orders for durable goods in the U.S. probably increased in June for the sixth time in the past seven months, showing business spending is supporting the country’s recovery, economists said before a report today. “Durable orders will be watched closely,” Xiao Jing, an analyst at Beijing Capital Futures Co., said today.

Copper for October delivery in Shanghai rose 2 percent to 56,220 yuan ($8,293) a ton at 2:48 p.m. local time. Aluminum futures in London gained 1 percent to $2,076.75 a ton, while lead gained 1.7 percent to $2,010 a ton and zinc advanced 2.6 percent to $1,958 a ton. Tin rose 1.1 percent to $19,550 a ton.

http://www.bloomberg.com/news/2010-07-28/copper-futures-in-london-may-extend-slump-after-u-s-confidence-declines.html