HANOI, Jan 19 (Reuters) - Copper prices were steady in lacklustre trade on Tuesday as global investors eyed an upcoming speech by U.S. Treasury Secretary nominee Janet Yellen that could determine the tone of policy in the world’s largest economy.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange rose 0.3% to $7,993 a tonne by 0815 GMT, while the most-traded March copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange ended up 0.3% at 58,890 yuan a tonne.
“Market participants are waiting for the speech by Janet Yellen during the Senate confirmation hearing as U.S. Treasury Secretary,” commodities broker Anna Stablum of Marex Spectron said in a note.
The speech by Yellen, President-elect Joe Biden’s nominee to run the Treasury Department, will likely give an indication about the direction of the dollar, a key factor affecting greenback-priced metals on the LME, and over a further stimulus programme from Washington.
LME aluminium fell 0.4% to $1,963.50 a tonne, nickel dipped 0.3% to $18,000 a tonne, while zinc lost 0.3% to $2,674 a tonne.
ShFE aluminium dropped 1.2% to 14,745 yuan a tonne and lead fell 1.4% to 14,785 yuan a tonne, while nickel advanced 0.2% to 133,460 yuan a tonne and zinc increased 0.2% to 20,305 yuan a tonne.
* China on Tuesday reported the worst outbreak of COVID-19 since March 2020 and virus infections in other major economies remained high, risking further movement curbs that could dampen the global economic recovery.
* Aluminium’s extensive price rally of recent months is likely to stall this year as China ramps up production and creates a surplus that will offset predicted shortages in the United States, Europe and Japan.
* China’s aluminium imports in December rose 40.5% from the previous month, customs data showed on Monday, snapping three months of declines and extending 2020’s position as a record year.
