METALS-Base metals slip as dollar firms, US tariff optimism wanes

By Brijesh Patel

May 30 (Reuters) - Industrial metals fell on Friday as the dollar strengthened and market optimism faded following a court ruling that reinstated the broadest tariffs imposed by U.S. President Donald Trump.

Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange CMCU3 was down 0.2% at $9,550 per metric ton, as of 0240 GMT.

The red metal, used in power and construction, has still gained 4.6% so far this month, and is set for its best month since September 2024.

The most-traded copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) SCFcv1 shed 0.4% to 77,680 yuan ($10,807.50)per ton.

LME aluminium CMAL3 fell 0.4% to $2,441 a ton, zinc CMZN3 slipped 0.7% to $2,656, lead CMPB3 dipped 0.4% to $1,954 and nickel CMNI3 fell 0.4% to $15,310. Tin CMSN3 dropped 1.1% to $30,855.

"Market rose yesterday due to optimism that the court was able to block Trump tariffs, but the rally faded late as the appeals court suspended that verdict," a metals trader in Singapore said.

A federal appeals court temporarily reinstated the most sweeping of Trump's tariffs on Thursday, a day after a U.S. trade court ruled that the president had exceeded his authority in imposing the duties and ordered an immediate block on them.

Stocks slipped in Asia as investors digested the court's move to keep Trump's tariffs in effect. MKTS/GLOB

Meanwhile, the dollar index .DXY rose 0.2% against its rivals, maing dollar-denominated assets more expensive to holders of other currencies.

Investors await the April U.S. personal consumption expenditures (PCE) price index report — the Federal Reserve's preferred inflation gauge — due later in the day, which could provide further insight into the central bank's policy direction.

SHFE aluminium SAFcv1 slipped 0.4% to 20,060 yuan a ton, lead SPBcv1 dropped 1% to 16,585 yuan, nickel SNIcv1 rose 1% to 120,960 yuan, while zinc SZNcv1 lost 0.7% to 22,200 yuan and tin SSNcv1 fell 2.5% to 251,310 yuan.

($1 = 7.1876 Chinese yuan)