Copper Futures (COPPER)

[baymare]

A Single Trader, JP Morgan, Holds 90% Of LME Copper
Submitted by Tyler Durden on 12/21/2010 21:43 -0500

http://www.zerohedge.com/article/single-trader-jp-morgan-holds-90-lme-copper

When a week ago we reported that JP Morgan has denied it owned more than 90% of the copper positions on the LME, we suggested that this could very well mean that Blythe Master's firm could just as easily control 89.999% of the copper and still not misrepresent the truth per that non-commital press release. Turns out our unbridled cynicism was spot on as usual. The Wall Street Journal has just reported that in the copper market "a single trader has reported it owns 80% to 90% of the copper sitting in London Metal Exchange warehouses, equal to about half of the world's exchange-registered copper stockpile and worth about $3 billion." Oh and yes, while JP Morgan technically is not singled out, we will be delighted to issue a retraction the second JP Morgan approaches us with a refutation that it is not the trader in question. And while we are at it, we also will repeat our claim that it was indeed JP Morgan that reduced its massive silver position, as per the recent FT article: as above we will immediately issue a retraction and apologize should JPM's legal department contact us that we are wrong on this. Somehow we don't think that will be an issue. And so it is once again made clear that the biggest market manipulating cartel in the world is not only JPM's commodity trading operation, but the "regulators" at the CFTC, who are doing all they can do to delay implementing rules on position limit- a stalling tactic whose sole purpose is to make the life of Jamie Dimon as comfortable as possible while he corners the copper market (and offloads his PM shorts to some "foreign bank"), even if that means the complete collapse in faith in the commodity market. Presumably, this means that Mr. Gensler has received an outsized Christmas gift to assuage his conscience. As for the commodity market, well, just look at what has happened to the stock market now that everyone knows it is nothing but a house of cards scam where a few robots front run each other. We are confident to quite confident tomorrow's ICI report will confirm that 33rd consecutive outflow from domestic equity funds. It is a pity that the same fate will now happen to the commodities market, as everyone tells Gensler to shove his corrupt market, and moves to physical. Frankly, it couldn't happen to a nicer group of so-called regulators.

From the WSJ:

Copper soared to a new record of $4.2705 per pound on Tuesday in New York, and is up 28.3% this year. The LME's three-month copper contract closed at $9,353.50 a metric ton, up 1.6% on the day, a new record.

J.P. Morgan Chase & Co. recently had a large position in copper, though it is unclear whether the U.S. bank increased its holdings, or whether a new player has taken dominant position.

"Regardless of who owns it, the only thing of note here is that we are being told that one person has a substantial position," said David Threlkeld, president of Resolved Inc., a metals consultancy.

While commodities exchanges scrutinize all holdings to ensure a single player isn't trying to corner the market, and many of the positions are owned by big firms on behalf of clients, the large holdings do result in a concentration of ownership that could skew prices.

Please keep the bolded text in mind, as you read the following description of the idiocy spewed on TV tonight, via the Street:

"Everything that goes up is not a bubble," Jim Cramer told the viewers of his "Mad Money" TV show Tuesday, as he reminded viewers that the laws of supply and demand have not been replaced by the law of gravity.



Cramer said he's had enough with the skeptics keeping investors from making real money in stocks, and especially in commodities. He said it's OK to be skeptical sometimes, but being skeptical about everything will only hurt your portfolio.

Case in point, the commodities. Cramer said the last big rally in commodities like copper and oil was indeed driven by a hedge fund frenzy, but this time is different. This time, he said, commodities are being driven higher by real demand, by the fact that the world is growing, and there's an inability to find new raw materials fast enough.

In other words: per Cramer, the story broken by the WSJ is just fabulation and JPM's 90% lock of the copper market is as indication of proper supply/demand dynamics. Because, in some parallel universe, JP Morgan controlling 90% of the market is real demand...

You read that right.

And this person is on TV, advising lemmings how to throw their money into a ponzi which nobody even pretends to hide.

That said, we are not worried about Cramer: following the next market crash, which is coming, after his termination from what is left of CNBC, he will make millions selling his latest book written in second grade friendly-English, titled "This time, I promise, it is different." With a subtitle:" Trust me - I was on TV...in spite of my atrocious Nielsens rating."