All Metals have been on a tear lately, Nickel is up over $5.00, Copper is over $2.00, Lead and Zinc are also up.

CLOSING PRICES (SPOT)

Gold US$/troy ounce 889.16 -4.34

Silver US$/troy ounce 12.74 0.02

Copper US$/lb 2.12 0.09

Lead US$/lb 0.67 0.06

Zinc US$/lb 0.64 0.02

Nickel US$/lb 5.33 0.45

Copper just keeps rolling on

INVESTMENT REPORTER

Copper prices have been on a tear this year, as Chinese demand for the metal - both for stockpiling for future use and loading factories to satisfy more immediate demand - has proved surprisingly resilient.


The metal rocketed 8 per cent higher yesterday to $2.08 (U.S.) a pound in London, its highest level since hitting a low of $1.26 in December. It's a tidy gain - but still leaves prices about 50 per cent short of where they were a year ago.


"There is a real reason for copper's rebound, and that is the strategic interest in China and a pickup in the country's industrial activity, which is what I was hoping for," said Patricia Mohr, vice-president and commodities specialist at Bank of Nova Scotia.


Desjardins Securities said yesterday that it expects copper to trade around $2.50 a pound through the rest of this year, before hitting $3 in 2010.


"We believe demand from China over the next 18 months and a slow-economic-growth scenario for the Western world are sufficient to sustain copper prices at higher levels," Desjardins wrote in a client report.


That's good news for Canadian producers, according to Ms. Mohr; at current levels, most miners are able to make money