Base metals prices on LME diverge, Stocks witness downtrend
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Base metals prices on the London Metal Exchange (LME) remained volatile on Thursday, 18 April.
Three-month aluminium futures gained by 0.50% to $2,600/tonne (t), while nickel prices were at $18,210/t (down 0.15%). Copper prices settled at $9,617/t, while zinc edged down by 0.95% to $2,812/t. Lead prices were almost stable at $2,156/t.
COMEX market
Copper prices on the Commodity Exchange (COMEX) inched up by 0.42% to $9,555/t against the previous closing.
India's non-ferrous markets
Aluminium
BigMint's assessment for tense scrap in the domestic market stood at INR 187,000/t. This reflects a slight increase of INR 1,000/t from the previous week's INR 186,000/t, ex-Delhi.
Copper
Domestic copper prices rose by up to 1.3% amid strong demand and bullish sentiments. Armature scrap touched INR 783,000/t and secondary rods, INR 830,000/t, ex-Delhi.
Japan's March core inflation slows
Oil prices rise
Oil prices rose by $3 per barrel on Friday following reports of Israeli missile strikes on a site in Iran. This has raised concerns about potential disruptions to oil supply in the Middle East. The benchmark contracts surged over $3 initially, then slightly eased. Brent futures had increased by $2.63, or 3%, reaching $89.74 per barrel.
Natural gas prices up
Prices of natural gas were recorded at $1.768/MMBtu, up 1.6%.
Dollar index
The dollar index, which gauges the value of the greenback in a basket of six different currencies, hovered at 106.25, slightly up by 0.09%.