Copper Remains in Sideways Range
Copper futures eased to around $4.31 per pound on Tuesday, remaining in a sideways trading range since mid-October as investors cautiously awaited policy announcements from a meeting of top leadership in China next week. The National People’s Congress is scheduled to meet on Nov. 4-8, with markets anticipating announcements on debt and other fiscal measures. China's October PMI reports due later this week could shed light on the impact of Beijing’s recent stimulus measures as demand uncertainties in the top metals consumer continued to weigh on commodity prices. A strong US dollar and Treasury yields also pressured commodities as signs of resilience in the US economy tempered expectations for aggressive Federal Reserve interest rate cuts. The possibility of a Trump election victory has also pushed the dollar and yields higher as his policies on tariffs, taxes and government spending are seen as inflationary.