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Copper on track for biggest monthly gain since April

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LME Week starts in London

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China heads for the week-long Golden Week holiday

(Updates prices as of 1141 GMT)

By Polina Devitt

LONDON, Sept 30 (Reuters) - Copper prices fell in London

on Monday with some investors booking profit as the metal was on

track for its biggest monthly gain since April after a series of

stimulus measures in top metals consumer China.

Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME)

was down 0.6% at $9,922.5 per metric ton by 1141 GMT

after hitting $10,158, its highest since June 7. The metal, used

in power and construction, is up 7.6% so far in September.

China's central bank said on Sunday it would tell banks to

lower mortgage rates for existing home loans before Oct. 31, as

part of sweeping policies to support the country's beleaguered

property market.

Chinese stocks surged on Monday, and China's yuan posted its

biggest quarterly gain against the dollar since 2020, making

dollar-priced metals more attractive for buyers using this

currency.

U.S. Comex copper futures touched $4.7900 a lb, the

highest since May 28, before retreating to $4.5745, down 0.6% vs

Friday.

"It seems like traders got a bit carried away, especially in

New York, perhaps expressing a market where liquidity is poor

ahead of the China's Golden Week holiday and LME Week in

London," said Ole Hansen, head of commodity strategy at Saxo

Bank.

LME Week, the annual gathering of metals industry

participants in London, started on Monday. The calendar end of

the quarter, when some investors square their books, coincides

on Monday with the last trading day in China before the

week-long Golden Week holiday.

Copper is yet to show signs of actual physical demand

improving to sustain the positive momentum from China's stimulus

package, Hansen added.

In terms of long-term prospects, mining giant BHP

said the world would consume an extra 1 million tons of

copper a year on average until 2035, double the annual volume

growth in the past 15 years.

LME nickel rose 2.1% to $17,345, zinc

increased 0.2% to $3,095, lead lost 0.3% to $2,114 and

tin climbed 0.9% to $33,205, while aluminium

eased 1.5% to $2,607 a ton.

Zinc, nickel and tin prices touched multi-month highs.