Zinc stockpiles rise most in 3-week on New Orleans surge

Zinc inventories tracked by the London Metal Exchange climbed the most in almost three weeks, driven by increases in New Orleans warehouses.

Stockpiles rose 12,850 metric tonnes, or 1.5 per cent, to 866,875 tonnes, daily LME figures showed. That’s the highest level since June 1995, and the increase was the biggest since May 18, according to data compiled by Bloomberg.

Inventories jumped 12,925 tonnes in New Orleans and slipped 75 tonnes in Chicago. New Orleans zinc stocks are up 31 per cent this year and account for 59 per cent of the total.

Orders to draw aluminum from warehouses, or canceled warrants, climbed 15,125 tonnes, or 2.9 per cent, to 529,775 tonnes, the highest level since at least October 1997. Most of the increase took place in Busan, South Korea. Total aluminum stockpiles fell for an eighth day, declining 7,475 tons to 4.67 million tonnes. Copper inventories rose 2,225 tonnes to 475,700 tonnes, up 36 per cent from the 2010 low on December 10. Canceled warrants fell 750 tonnes to 18,900 tonnes.