METALS-LME copper edges up after 3-day drop ahead of China data
SINGAPORE, Feb 8 (Reuters) - London copper futures ticked up on Friday, bouncing back after three days of losses ahead of data likely to show that imports by top copper consumer China may have recovered in January. Copper may end the week with a modest decline, its second weekly drop out of three, with investors struggling to push prices higher amid weak physical demand in China and a looming global supply surplus.
FUNDAMENTALS
* Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange rose 0.3 percent to $8,224 a tonne by 0122 GMT. Copper hit a four-month high of $8,346 on Monday but has since traded below that. For the week, the contract is down nearly 1 percent.
* The most-traded May copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange was nearly flat at 59,600 yuan ($9,600) a tonne.
* China's copper imports may have risen in January after falling in December although near-record stocks in Shanghai should keep any increase modest.
* For China's overall trade data, a Reuters poll sees export growth in January to be the strongest in 11 months, but the trade numbers may have been skewed by the timing of the Lunar New Year holidays which fell in January last year.
* The European Central Bank will monitor the economic impact of a strengthening euro, ECB President Mario Draghi said, feeding expectations the climbing currency could open the door to an interest rate cut.
* The number of Americans filing new claims for jobless benefits fell last week and a trend reading hit a near five-year low, signs a grinding recovery in the labour market remains on track.
* The Federal Reserve looks set to continue its bond-buying stimulus for the foreseeable future despite hints of strength in the economy and rising concern about the policy's risks.
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MARKETS NEWS
* The euro hovered near two-week lows following Draghi's comments and Asian shares were steady ahead of China's trade numbers for January.
DATA/EVENTS (GMT)
N/A China Exports N/A China Imports N/A China Trade balance 0530 China CPI 0530 China PPI
0700 Germany Trade balance
0900 Italy Industrial output 1330 U.S. International trade 1930 U.S. CFTC commitment of traders data
Base metals prices at 0122 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct Move YTD pct chg LME Cu 8224.00 24.00 +0.29 3.72 SHFE CU FUT MAY3 59600 10 +0.02 3.33 HG COPPER MAR3 373.55 0.85 +0.23 2.27 LME Alum 2105.00 7.00 +0.33 1.64 SHFE AL FUT MAY3 15210 05 +0.03 -0.88 LME Zinc 2162.25 -0.75 -0.03 4.79 SHFE ZN FUT MAY3 15905 360 +2.32 2.32 LME Nickel 18200.00 20.00 +0.11 6.09 LME Lead 2408.00 0.00 +0.00 2.91 SHFE PB FUT 15500.00 65.00 +0.42 1.64 LME Tin 24675.00 0.00 +0.00 5.45 LME/Shanghai arb^ 568
Shanghai and COMEX contracts show most active months ($1 = 6.2322 Chinese yuan)
(Reporting by Manolo Serapio Jr.; Editing by Himani Sarkar)