BEIJING, May 3 (Reuters) - Most base metals rose on Thursday
as the market waited for cues from the Sino-U.S. trade talks
that have started in Beijing, even as both sides sought to
downplay the prospect of a major breakthrough.
The world's two biggest economies have imposed import
tariffs on each other's goods, including Chinese aluminium and
U.S. aluminium scrap, and threatened more action in a trade
dispute that has roiled metals markets.
Tensions over the U.S.-China talks hit Asian stock markets
but "for the moment, it has not deterred buyers of metals that
much," Kingdom Futures CEO Malcolm Freeman wrote in a note.
FUNDAMENTALS
* SHFE COPPER: The most-traded June copper contract on the
Shanghai Futures Exchange closed 0.1 percent higher at
51,060 yuan ($8,034.62) a tonne, snapping three sessions of
falls.
* LME COPPER: Three-month copper on the London Metal
Exchange had climbed 1 percent to $6,886.50 a tonne by
0741 GMT, following a 1.1 percent gain in the previous session.
* ALUMINIUM: London aluminium recovered from early
losses to trade 0.5 percent higher at $2,333 a tonne, after
closing up 2.7 percent on Wednesday following a plunge in
available LME aluminium stocks. Shanghai aluminium
closed up 0.9 percent at 14,565 yuan a tonne, having earlier
touched its highest since April 23.
* TRADE: A U.S. trade delegation arrived in Beijing on
Thursday for key talks over tariffs, with Chinese state media
saying China will stand up to U.S. bullying if needed but that
it was still better to hash things out around the negotiating
table.
* TARIFFS: Brazil on Wednesday contradicted a United States
announcement that the two countries had reached a deal on a
permanent exemption from steel and aluminium import tariffs,
saying the Trump administration had unilaterally cut off talks.
* RUSAL: The chairman of En+ Group said on
Wednesday he was working on implementing a plan that En+ hopes
will lead to the United States lifting sanctions on the company,
the biggest shareholder in aluminium giant Rusal.
