Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were mainly firmer on the morning of Tuesday August 31, while those on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were more mixed.
This comes despite the release of some weaker-than-expected Chinese manufacturing numbers. The US dollar index was, however, weaker. China's manufacturing purchasing managers index (PMI) fell to 50.1 in August from 50.4 in July. China's services PMI slumped to 47.5 in August after a reading of 53.3 in July.Base metalsThe LME three-month lead price was down by 0.4% this morning at $2,276.50 per tonne but the rest of the complex was up by an average of 1.6%. Considering the weak Chinese PMI numbers, this is highly surprising. Aluminium at $2,710.50 per tonne led to upside with a 2.1% gain, while copper at $9,501 per tonne was up by 0.9%. Volumes on the LME were high, with 14,696 lots traded by 6.42...