Copper rises amid concerns of global growth expectations

Rose to a copper futures to their highest level Thursday morning in European trade, amid growing concerns about an escalation of the debt crisis in the euro zone trade data, which the Chinese have been disappointing, prompting investors to avoid the growth-linked assets.

In the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, the futures trading of copper for July delivery at 3.663 dollars - per pound during the European morning trade, up by 0.1%.

This had risen earlier by as much as 0.8% to trade at the highest level in the session at 3.693 dollars per pound.

Came the futures of copper at the highest levels that reduce the number of the European Central Bank forecast GDP growth for 2012 to minus 0.2% from minus 0.1%, in its monthly report, published earlier, and are still downside risks to economic outlook.

In the meantime, investors continued to control political developments in Greece, as the debt-ridden country that is struggling to form a coalition government after elections end of the week.

Alexis gave Tsepraz leader's second-largest party in Greece attempts to form a new government on Wednesday Wednesday, giving the leader of the Socialist Party Evangelos Venizelos last chance to try to form a government on Thursday.

And seemed to opportunities on the formation of a weak coalition government after two failed attempts, making new elections within three to four weeks are the most likely outcome, raising new fears that Greece will not have a government in a timely manner to secure the slide coming from international aid next month.

Investors remained worried, whether elected Socialist President Francois Hollande has called to take an approach that focuses more on growth to address the debt crisis, which could create tensions with Germany's insistence on fiscal austerity.

In the meantime, the growing concerns about the health of the banking sector in Spain, after the Bank of Spain received a formal request on Wednesday evening to buy a stake in Pankia, the fourth-largest lender in the country.

The yield on Spanish bonds with 10 years of above 6% in early European trading to reach its highest level since early December, reflecting investor fears about holding riskier assets.

Europe is Ba second region in global demand for the metal industry. So interested in tracking investor sentiment towards the debt crisis in the euro area in recent months.

Prices rose during the Asian trading session despite the rise in Chinese exports and imports less than expected in April.

In a report, said General Administration of Customs said China's trade surplus the country rose to 18.42 billion dollars in April from 5.35 billion the previous month.

The data showed that exports rose by 4.9% in April of last year, less-than-expected growth of 9.1% and 8.9% of the slowdown in March.

And imports rose by 0.4% in April, far less than expected by 12.5% ​​declining sharply from 5.3% in the previous month.

Usually regarded as the trade surplus is a good sign, but the result in the April to April seemed more Pray to a weakness in imports, which Azzalmkhaov of a slowdown in the second-largest economy in the world.

The slowdown in China, the second largest economy in the world that, weakening of the global expansion that has already faltering because of the austerity measures in Europe.

China is the world's largest consumer of copper, which represents approximately 40% of global consumption last year.

However, the higher prices, analysts said Beijing need to loosen monetary policy to stimulate the expansion and avert the threat of failure in the annual growth.

Elsewhere in the Comex, gold for June delivery fell 0.25% to trade at 590.45, $ 1 an ounce, while silver for July delivery fell 0.4% to trade at 29.13 dollars per ounce.