LME copper was higher on Thursday as fears of a supply shortage heated

Although copper tends to weaken when investors dump riskier assets, copper prices on Thursday reversed
the trend of global stock markets.
Global equities edged lower
as the number of new cases climbed globally and the International Monetary Fund (IMF) cut its global economic forecast.

Saxo Bank's head of commodity strategy said that while there may be doubts about the demand side after the IMF cuts its growth forecasts further, there are certainly supply-side concerns
.

LME data on Thursday showed copper inventories fell further, to their lowest level since January, and have fallen by more than
half in the past month.
The news also boosted copper prices
.

Copper inventories in the Shanghai Futures Exchange tracking warehouses fell for the sixth consecutive week to their lowest level
in more than 17 months.

By Wednesday's close, LME spot copper narrowed to $8.
50 a tonne from a three-month copper discount, the narrowest in about three months, indicating tighter
supply in LME warehouses.
The spread was trading at a discount of $
10.
50 a tonne late Thursday.

Chile's miners' union has demanded an investigation
into the death of a third miner from the coronavirus at Chile's state-run copper company (Codelco).
The death will put further pressure
on Chile's copper mining industry, which plays a key role in Chile's economy, as unions seek greater protections for workers.
Copper mine shutdowns due to the coronavirus pandemic are now close to 500,000 tonnes, five times
the estimated 100,000 tonnes in March, analysts said.