Shanghai base metals fell on Thursday, with aluminum dropping more than 3 percent to a three-week low, as COVID-19 restrictions in top consumer China and prospects of bigger US rate hikes fuelled worries about a slowdown in global economic growth.
The most-traded May aluminum contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange slipped 3.1 percent to 21,895 yuan ($3,441.69) a ton, while copper was down 0.5 percent at 73,380 yuan ($11,534.65) a ton.
ShFE nickel fell 1.5 percent, zinc was down 0.8 percent and tin SSNcv1 declined 2 percent.
“The move lower in Shanghai aluminum prices may be as simple as the global market digesting the prospect of a more aggressive Federal Reserve response,” said Thomas Westwater, an analyst at DailyFX. – Reuters
