METALS-London copper falls on concerns over potential US tariff

By Hongmei Li

SINGAPORE, June 3 (Reuters) - London copper prices lost ground on Tuesday as concerns over possible U.S. tariffs on the metal weighed, although a weaker U.S. dollar cushioned the fall.

Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange CMCU3 shed 0.7% to $9,554 per metric ton as of 0708 GMT. The most-traded copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange SCFcv1 fell 0.1% to 77,650 yuan ($10,796.72) per ton.

On Friday, U.S. President Donald Trump announced his plans to double tariffs on aluminum and steel imports to 50% effective Wednesday, renewing concerns over potential tariffs on copper.

"U.S. trade officials are currently reviewing the impact of U.S. copper imports on the local industry, with a report due in the next few weeks," ANZ Research said.

The dollar index =USD, which measures the U.S. currency against six major peers, hovered near the six-week low hit earlier in the session. USD/

A softer dollar makes greenback-dominated assets more affordable to holders of other currencies. FRX/

The Caixin/S&P Global manufacturing PMI for China fell to 48.3 in May from 50.4 in April, the lowest reading in 32 months. China's official PMI also persisted in the contraction zone for May.

On Monday, copper stocks in the LME-registered warehouses MCUSTX-TOTAL dropped 45% since mid-February to 148,450 tons, the lowest in almost a year.

Among the other London metals, LME aluminium CMAL3 fell 0.9% to $2,443.5 a ton, zinc CMZN3 slipped 1% to $2,670.5, lead CMPB3 dipped 0.8% to $1,965.5 and nickel CMNI3 shed 0.7% to $15,425. Tin CMSN3 fell 0.2% to $30,635.

SHFE aluminium SAFcv1 fell 1.1% at 19,860 yuan a ton, lead SPBcv1 fell 0.3% to 16,570 yuan, zinc SZNcv1 fell 0.5% to 22,180 yuan, and tin SSNcv1 eased 1.2% to 249,800 yuan, while nickel SNIcv1 rose 0.1% to 121,250 yuan.

($1 = 7.1991 Chinese yuan)