With markets in China and much of Southeast Asia closed on Thursday February 11 ahead of Lunar New Year, trading on the London Metal Exchange this morning has been quiet with the base metals ranged between being down by 0.3% and up by 0.2%.

Trafigura is set to open an office in Toronto, Canada, to help foster links with mining companies based in the region, sources told Fastmarkets.

China increased refined and unrefined copper imports by over 31% year on year in 2020, whereas scrap inflow shrank significantly, reflecting the import policy change for waste products that came into force at the end of the year.

Base metals prices were putting in a strong performance on the last trading day before the Chinese New Year holiday, with all the metals, with the exception of an already strong tin, seeing gains this morning, Wednesday February 10.

With the exception of tin, base metals prices on both the London Metal Exchange and Shanghai Futures Exchange were firmer this morning, Tuesday February 9, as were the precious metals and oil, while the US dollar continued with its recent pullback.

Peru reported a year-on-year decrease in copper production for the second month in a row in December, while zinc output continued to recover, according to the latest data from the country's Ministry of Energy & Mines (Minem).

Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were mainly weaker this morning, Monday February 8, while those on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were mostly firmer, but this comes after a strong performance on the LME on Friday, when prices closed up by an average of 1.7%.

Three-month base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were up across the board on the morning of Friday February 5, led by a 1.4% gain in nickel, with the US Dollar Index easing after reaching a three-month high on Thursday.

With the exception of tin, base metals prices on both the London Metal Exchange and the Shanghai Futures Exchange were firmer this morning, Friday February 5, suggesting there is little appetite for follow-through selling after recent bouts of weakness.

Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange were mainly weaker, while those on the Shanghai Futures Exchange were mainly firmer this morning, Thursday February 4, with the weaker dollar likely weighing on dollar-denominated prices.