MELBOURNE/BEIJING, Dec 17 (Reuters) - Most base metals rose
on Monday, starting the week with cautious optimism that China
and the United States will be able to resolve a trade row that
has weighed on prices for most of this year, although weak
economic indicators capped gains.
China's retail sales grew at their weakest pace since 2003
and its industrial output rose the least in nearly three years,
according to official data released last week.
Investors are now focusing on a speech by Chinese President
Xi Jinping to mark the 40th anniversary of China's reform and
opening up on Tuesday, after which a two-day Federal Open Market
Committee meeting begins in the United States.
In the short run, copper prices will take their cue from the
Fed meeting and China's upcoming Central Economic Work
Conference, brokerage Jinrui Futures wrote in a note.
But it cautioned: "The release of any macro good news will
only bring about a short-term spike and won't form a sustained
rising market."
FUNDAMENTALS
* COPPER: Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange
inched up 0.1 percent to $6,139.50 a tonne as of 0715
GMT. The most-traded February copper contract on the Shanghai
Futures Exchange closed up 0.2 percent at 49,230 yuan
($7,137.27) a tonne.
* TRADE: China will temporarily suspend additional 25
percent tariffs on U.S.-made vehicles and auto parts starting
Jan. 1, 2019, the finance ministry said on Friday, following a
truce in a trade war between the world's two largest economies.
* VEDANTA: An Indian environment court set aside on Saturday
the Tamil Nadu state government's order to close Vedanta's
copper smelter plant permanently, taking the company
closer to reopening its facility in southern India.
* OTHER METALS: Shanghai nickel, the top performer,
rose as much as 2 pct to 91,040 yuan a tonne, its highest since
Dec. 6, before closing up 1.9 percent, while Shanghai zinc
added 1.5 percent.
* USD: The dollar held near a 19-month high, bolstered by
safe-haven buying as heightened concerns of a global economic
slowdown reduced appetite for riskier assets such as stocks and
Asian currencies.
