The copper market will be rattled by the powerful weekend earthquake that hit Chile and halted production at several major mines and ports.
While government officials say exports of copper metals and concentrates won’t be stopped, prices will rally strongly just on fear.
In all cases, early reports said the stoppages were due to power supplies being knocked out or destroyed by the powerful quake.
Officials and miners are now on alert for after shocks which can also prove damaging.
Earthquakes have hit operating mines in past years (Escondida was shut briefly a couple of years ago) and prices rallied strongly until the full extent of the position was known.
Copper had a solid February, thanks to rising activity in Asian economies.
News reports from Reuters and Bloomberg said the 8.8-magnitude quake forced the government-owned mining company Codelco to halt operations at its El Teniente and Andina mines because the power supply had been knocked out.
Production from Codelco’s Caletones smelter was also stopped.
It may take two days for output to resume.
Other Codelco operations were unaffected.
In addition, Anglo-American’s Los Bronces and El Soldado mines which together produce about 280,000 tonnes of copper a year, also stopped operations.
The main copper ports of Antofagasta and Mejillones are operating normally, but the government said the smaller copper port of San Antonio was closed.
Most of Chile’s copper mining industry is in the north of the country.
The quake, which killed over 400 people, struck in central Chile.
Government officials confirmed to Reuters that the two biggest mines in the far north – Escondida and Chuquicamata – were unaffected.
Freeport McMoRan Copper & Gold Inc said the quake did not damage its two mines in Chile, but its Candelaria mine is being shut because the power has also been cut.
A day earlier on Friday prices rose, giving copper its best month since last August.
Copper prices have more than doubled in the past year thanks to the weaker US dollar and rising demand from Asia, and now the US.
Comex May copper futures jumped 7.4 cents, or 2.3%, to $US3.284 a pound in New York (storm and all).
That left the metal up 7.6% for the month, not enough though to regain the entire 8.8% drop in January.
On the London Metal Exchange, three month copper rose $US196, or 2.8%, to $US7,195 a metric tonne ($US3.27 a pound).
Zinc, aluminum, tin, lead and nickel rose.
Oil futures climbed back within striking distance of $US80 a barrel Friday, with prices up 9.3% in February.
That’s a bit less than the 11% surge a week earlier, but dealers say supply-and-demand issues have started dominating over moves in the US dollar.
April crude rose $US1.49, or 1.9%, to end at $US79.66 a barrel on the New York Mercantile Exchange.
For the week, crude ended off 0.5% from last Friday’s close of $US80.06 a barrel.
For the month, crude was up $US6.77, or 9.3%, from the $US72.89 a barrel level at the end of January.
Prices have ranged between $US69 and $US84 a barrel since October.
Gold jumped on Friday, rising for a second day, as the US dollar fell.
April Comex gold futures rose $US10.40 to $US1,118.90 an ounce, the highest since a week ago.
Prices fell 0.2% over the week but were up 2.3% for the month.
Wheat had its first monthly gain since last November.
Dealers say investors are unwinding short positions in the grain now that it seems the price has fallen far enough and the US dollar is firmer.
Futures on the Chicago Board of Trade jumped 9.5% last month.
The current May contract rose 15.5c, or 3.1%, to $US5.1925 a bushel and finished 3% up over the week.
Still the grain is still down. It shed 19% in two months to the end of January on rising production and stocks.
And a big faller in February was sugar, previously the best performer.
Sugar futures prices lost 11% last month.
ICE March raw sugar fell to 23.86 USc per pound, down 2% on the day and an eight-week low.
Sugar prices have fallen 23.5% since its 29-year high of 30.40c in early January.
And cotton rose, capping a 19% jump in its futures price as demand for the fibre reappeared. It was the biggest rise for two years.
May Cotton futures rose 1.6%, to 82.46 USc a pound in New York, to leave it up 19% on its January close and the biggest gain since February 2008.
Markets finished the week and the month all a bit mixed, as the worries about Greece and the economic recovery came to the fore last week, once again. Equities overall had a solid month, but the economies of Europe and the US slowed according to some figures, but Asian economies showed that they have recovered from the GFC and are now growing strongly.
We find out this week how our economy went in the December quarter.
Fourth quarter US economic growth proved to be a bit stronger than first forecast (5.9% annual compared with 5.7%).
But consumer confidence fell (in the University of Michigan survey, as well as the US Conference Board), but sales of existing homes dropped sharply last month, mirroring the slump in new home sales.
So the Dow rose 4.23 points to 10,325.26 on Friday, which was down 0.8% for the week, but up 2.6% for the month.
That was its
