LONDON, Aug 11 (Reuters) – Copper bounced back on Thursday as upbeat labour
market data from the United States helped ease some fears about the economy,
while an appreciation of China’s currency also boosted the metal as it suggested
the country was confident about growth prospects.

Benchmark copper on the London Metal Exchange ended at $8,881 a
tonne, after hitting its lowest close since December at $8,595 on Wednesday.

LONDON (Reuters) – An unusually high level of strikes and weather-related stoppages at copper mines mean supplies of the key industrial metal this year are likely to stagnate, which could contribute to a deficit and sustain prices even if economic slowdown hits demand.

At the start of each year analysts make an allowance for the amount of copper expected to be lost to disruptions such as the strike action in recent weeks in Chile, the world’s largest copper producer.

LONDON/DETROIT (Reuters) – In a rundown patch of Detroit, enclosed by a cyclone fence and barbed wire, stands an unremarkable warehouse that investment bank Goldman Sachs has transformed into a money-making machine.

The derelict neighborhood off Michigan Avenue is a sharp contrast to Goldman’s bustling skyscraper headquarters near Wall Street, but the two operations share one important element: management by the bank’s savvy financial professionals.

LONDON/DETROIT, July 28 (Reuters) – In a rundown patch of
Detroit, enclosed by a cyclone fence and barbed wire, stands an
unremarkable warehouse that investment bank Goldman Sachs
has transformed into a money-making machine.

The derelict neighbourhood off Michigan Avenue is a sharp
contrast to Goldman’s bustling skyscraper headquarters near Wall
Street, but the two operations share one important element:
management by the bank’s savvy financial professionals.

LONDON, July 18 (Reuters) – Copper edged higher on Monday, taking heart from
recent Chinese import data and supply problems in Chile and elsewhere, but gains
were limited by a wave of risk aversion that swept through the markets due to
the euro zone debt crisis and the threat of a U.S. default.

Benchmark copper on the London Metal Exchange closed at $9,694 a
tonne, up slightly from $9,672 at the close on Friday.

LONDON (Reuters) – UK-based junk removal firm AnyJunk pays its collection teams a bonus for the metal they can separate for sale to scrap merchants to help cut its disposal costs and boost profits.

Chief Executive Jason Mohr told Reuters that part of AnyJunk’s ethos was to encourage recycling wherever possible, with about 79 percent of all materials it collects avoiding landfill through reuse or recycling.

LONDON, July 18 (Reuters) – Copper was steady on Monday, but
expected to come under pressure due to doubts about demand from
top consumer China and the euro zone debt crisis.

Benchmark copper on the London Metal Exchange was
trading at $9,674 a tonne at 1015 GMT from $9,672 at the close
on Friday.

LONDON, July 15 (Reuters) – Gold slipped on Friday
undermined by growing perceptions that further stimulus measures
from the United States were unlikely and by a higher dollar
against the euro, which was under pressure from concern about
the results of European bank stress tests.

Spot gold was bid at $1,579.30 a troy ounce at 1021
GMT from $1,586.75 an ounce late in New York on Thursday when
the precious metal hit a record high of $1,594.16.

July 1 (Reuters) – Corn prices plummeted to 3-1/2 month
lows on Friday on a report from the U.S. government which said
stocks and sowing areas were both larger than market
expectations.

Industrial commodities copper and crude oil came under
pressure after surveys showed June factory activity in China
grew at its slowest pace in 28 months, while gold’s appeal was
diminished by Greece’s approval of a key austerity package.

LONDON (Reuters) – The anti-competition watchdog said on Wednesday it will take another look at activity by large traders on the London Metal Exchange that also own warehouses, after lawmakers again raised concerns.

A parliamentary committee on Wednesday said it had alerted the Office of Fair Trading (OFT) to more concerns that the same firms that trade metals are able to hold large amounts of metal stored in warehouses monitored by the LME, the world’s top metals exchange.