Falling copper prices may be an indication that investors are growing nervous about China’s growth prospects. Economists predict the Chinese economy will expand an average 7.45% this year, the weakest pact since 1990, as Beijing enacts economic reforms to reign in rising credit, lower overcapacity, diminish industrial pollution and shift over to a consumer-based economy. The iShares China Large-Cap ETF (NYSEArca: FXI) declined 13.7% year-to-date.
The depressed copper prices are also weighing on Chile, the world’s largest copper producer. The iShares MSCI Chile Capped ETF (NYSEArca: ECH) has declined 10.6% year-to-date. [Copper Collapse Chills Chile ETF]
iPath Dow Jones-UBS Copper Total Return Sub-Index ETN
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