Copper Extends Declines as Tariffs Loom

By Ben St. Clair

LONDON--Copper prices edged down Thursday as investors awaited tariffs from both the U.S. and China that were set to be imposed starting Friday morning.

The industrial metal was down 0.17% to $6,392.50 a metric ton in late morning trade, bringing its weekly losses to 3.29%.

Gold, meanwhile, fell 0.42% to $1,251.53 a troy ounce, erasing its gains from earlier in the week.

After thin trading Wednesday due to the U.S. Independence Day holiday, market participants were keeping an eye on U.S. trade rhetoric and President Donald Trump's Twitter feed. The U.S. and China each plan to put tariffs on $34 billion of imports starting 12:01 a.m. Eastern time on Friday.

"I think the market has already come off in anticipation," said William Adams, head of research at FastMarkets. Investors will have sold off assets before Friday's deadline, Mr. Adams said.

Gold's decline came after India's year-over-year gold imports fell by nearly a quarter, though Commerzbank analysts noted that 2017 levels were unusually high. With China also buying up less gold, soft demand in the precious metal's two largest markets has dampened prices, the analysts wrote in a note Thursday.

Minutes from the Federal Reserve's June's meeting, out later Thursday, could yield clues on the pace of upcoming rate increases. As interest rates rise, non yield-bearing assets like gold become less attractive to investors. U.S. ADP payrolls are also set for release Thursday.

In base metals, zinc was up 0.61% at $2,726.5 a metric ton, aluminum edged down 0.05% to $2,102 a metric ton, tin was up 0.10% at $19,600 a metric ton, nickel was up 0.99% to $14,280 a metric ton and lead rose 1.50% to $2,370 a metric ton.

Among other precious metals, silver fell 0.81% to $15.95 a troy ounce, platinum was down 0.36% at $838.95 a troy ounce and palladium was down 0.31% at $946.10 troy ounce.

Write to Ben St. Clair at [email protected]