Copper

Copper rose the most in a week after inventories plunged in China, the world's biggest user of the metal.

Stockpiles monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange dropped 21 percent to 44,855 metric tons this week, marking the biggest decline since the week ended Jan. 25. Copper, used in pipes and wires, has more than tripled in the past four years as demand grew in China, the world's fastest-growing major economy.

Chinese copper use rose 38 percent in the eight months ended Aug. 31, the International Copper Study Group said on Nov. 16. Demand will continue to rise as the Chinese economy accelerates, said Patricia Mohr, an analyst at Scotiabank Group in Toronto.
Copper also rose as U.S. equities rebounded, easing concern that the U.S. economy is deteriorating. The Standard & Poor's 500 Index climbed as much as 1.7 percent. Industrial metals have the highest correlation among all commodities to the equity market, according to Deutsche Bank AG.

Copper still dropped 5.3 percent this week on speculation that slower economic expansion will curb demand in the U.S., the world's second-largest copper consumer.

Federal Reserve officials this week cut their 2008 U.S. growth forecasts, predicting the economy will expand by 1.8 percent next year. Copper has dropped 20 percent since reaching an 11-month high on May 4 as a slump in U.S. housing slowed the economy and reduced metals usage.