* Top picks for this year copper and gold
* Strong supply outlook may be clouded by macro concerns in
H1
* New global mining fund to launch in March
By Eric Onstad
LONDON, Jan 17 (Reuters) – Metals markets are likely
to navigate a stormy first half, supported by strong long-term
fundamentals that are now obscured by uncertainty over Europe’s
debt crisis and Chinese growth, the manager of a new mining fund
for Baring Asset Management said.
The supply outlook for many commodities such as copper is
tight, but this may not show up fully in the price until later
in the year, said Clive Burstow, manager of the new Baring
Global Mining Fund due to launch in March.
“We take the view that fundamentals for the commodities even
for this year still look pretty good. Supply cannot react to
even moderate demand growth. I don’t think the world is going to
fall off a cliff,” he told Reuters on Tuesday.
“But I suspect there will be periods of price weakness … I
would say that the first half is probably going to be the
difficult bit.
“I’m more optimistic on the second half, where hopefully by
then things in Europe will get on a firmer footing, people will
stop worrying so much about China … and the U.S. is coming to
the end of the election cycle.”
Continued…
