Dull trade follows LME trend

MARKET REVIEW/NON-FERROUS METALS

Non-ferrous metals had dull week in domestic trade. Nickel lost ground following losses on London Metals Exchange (LME). Aluminium and copper recovered.

Nickel cathodes closed at Rs 746 per kilogram on Monday against last week's Rs 760, slipping to Rs 775 on Tuesday, Rs 772 on Wednesday and Rs 750 on Friday.

Copper wire bars closed up at Rs 180 from last week's Rs 176. Copper heavy scrap closed down at Rs 157. Copper heavy utensil scrap ended trade at Rs 135, down Rs 1 from last Monday after rising to Rs 138 on Tuesday.

Brass utensil scraps closed at Rs 105 , down from last Monday's Rs 107 after rising to Rs 108 on Tuesday. Brass sheet cutting closed at Rs 109 against last Monday's Rs 109.50.

Aluminium utensil scraps closed at Rs 83 from Rs 82 last week. Lead ingots slipped to Rs 53 from last week's Rs 54, peaking at Rs 55 on Tuesday but slipping Saturday to Rs 52.

Aluminium ingots closed up at Rs 97 against last week's Rs 96.50. Zinc slabs closed at Rs 74.50 from Rs 77 last week.

In the futures market, lead March contracts on the National Multi Commodity Exchange (NMCE) closed at Rs 44.30 against Rs 44.20 last Monday, with volume on Monday at 1012 grams from 40 trades.