Copper Prices Slide as China's Industrial Growth Slows

Copper prices have slipped on the London Metal Exchange as traders assess China's demand outlook following slower growth in industrial profits.

Earnings at industrial enterprises rose just 4.2% in August from a year earlier, after increasing 11% in July, marking the weakest growth since last November, according to the statistics bureau.

The National Day holiday in China runs from October 1 to 7, and traders are closely monitoring macro drivers such as consumption and investment, which have softened, business confidence, and government fiscal spending.