(Updates prices)LONDON, Aug 5 (Reuters) - A bullish mood on U.S. marketspushed copper slightly higher on Thursday, ending a four-daylosing run triggered by concerns over the demand outlook fromtop consumer China.
Benchmark copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME)was up 0.3% at $9,492.50 a tonne at 1600 GMT.
The metal used in power and construction, which is expectedto benefit from a global move from fossil fuels toelectrification, has fallen from a record high of $10,747.50 inMay but is still up more than 20% this year.
"We've got forces pulling in opposite directions," said SaxoBank analyst Ole Hansen.
"The longer term bullish narrative hasn't changed much ...(but) the market's a bit worried about the Chinese slowdown," hesaid.
Copper has slipped below its short-term moving averages,worsening its technical picture. But key support is around$8,700, where copper's 200-day moving average currently sits,Hansen said.
MARKETS: U.S. stocks and oil prices rebounded asunemployment claims declined and the U.S. trade deficit widened,two signs of positive economic momentum.COVID: A Chinese health official said he expected acoronavirus outbreak in China to be largely under control withinweeks.FACTORIES: German industrial orders rose more than expectedin June. INFRASTRUCTURE: A $1 trillion bipartisan infrastructure billfaces a test in the Senate on Thursday. OUTLOOK: Industrial metals will likely fall in 2021 and 2022with copper averaging $7,500 a tonne in the last quarter of nextyear, analysts at Capital Economics said."Underpinning this view are our forecasts for economicgrowth to slow in China, a continued rebound in supply frommajor producers, and a stronger U.S. dollar," they said.
LEAD: The premium for cash lead over three month metal onthe LME eased to $39.50 from as high as $89 on Wednesday, thehighest since 2011. A premium signals low availability ofquickly deliverable material. Lead inventories in LME-registered warehouses at 58,850tonnes are the lowest since July 2019. METALS PRICES: LME aluminium was up 1.2% at $2,596 atonne, zinc rose 1.7% to $3,024.50, nickel added1.2% to $19,470, lead fell 1% to $2,355.50 and tin was 0.2% higher at $34,690. (Reporting by Peter HobsonAdditional reporting by Mai Nguyen in HANOIEditing by Mark Potter, Jonathan Oatis and David Evans)