Peak Copper??? Copper prices in New York rose to a 16-year high after global inventories fell to the lowest since May 1988 as demand continues to outpace production by miners. ``Supply may dry up,'' said Joe Sara, manager of metals planning and procurement for Cedar Rapids, Iowa-based PMX Industries Inc., which buys about 150 million pounds of copper a year used to make bullets, coins and locks. Demand from locksmiths and others making products for homes is ``very hot,'' he said.
``The fact is there's not enough copper coming out of the ground to meet current demand and forecast demand,'' said Stuart Flerlage, managing principal at New York-based Brownstone Advisors LLC, who forecast the metal would rise, even as prices dropped to a four-month low last month. ``People are not accurately able to judge what demand is.'' Flerlage said last month was his most profitable since he started his company two years ago, and May 31 ``was my best day ever.''
Deliverable copper stockpiles in China fell 8,563 tons this week to 19,848 tons, the lowest in four weeks, according to a survey of seven registered warehouses by the Shanghai Futures Exchange. ``This shows that the supply shortage in China hasn't been eased,'' said Wang Zheng, a metal analyst at Shanghai Dalu Futures.
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