METALS-Copper wallows near multi-month lows as recession fears bite

July 5 (Reuters) - Copper prices languished near 17-month

lows on Tuesday on heightened worries that aggressive rate hikes

by central banks to tackle soaring inflation would push

economies into a recession and dent demand for metals.

* Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was down 0.2% at $7,993 a tonne, as of 0244 GMT, after hitting its lowest since February 2021 at $7,918 on Monday.

* The most-traded August copper contract in Shanghai

fell 0.7% to 60,770 yuan ($9,081.54) a tonne.

* Pulling down economic activity are soaring inflation and interest rate hikes in many countries including the United States where the Federal Reserve is expected to deliver another 75-basis-point hike this month.

* China's services activity snapped three months of losses in June and grew at the fastest rate in almost a year as easing COVID-19 curbs revived demand, although firms remained cautious about hiring, a private-sector survey showed.

* Japan's services sector activity expanded at the fastest pace in more than eight years in June as the easing of coronavirus curbs boosted sentiment among businesses such as those in tourism.

* Mainland China reported 418 new coronavirus cases for July 4, compared with 460 new cases a day earlier, the National Health Commission said.

* The premium for aluminum shipments to Japanese buyers for July to September was set at $148 a tonne, down 14% from the previous quarter, to reflect weak demand for automobiles and rising local inventory.

* Chile's total copper production fell 2.55% in May to reach 478,800 tonnes, government body Cochilco said on Monday.

* Global copper smelting activity declined in June, hit by a stoppage in top producer Chile, data from satellite surveillance of metal processing plants showed on Monday.

MARKETS NEWS

* Asian shares rose on Tuesday as market sentiment got a boost after Japan reported positive economic data.

(Reporting by Brijesh Patel in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips)

((Brijesh.Patel1@thomsonreuters.com; Within U.S. +1 651 8485832, Outside U.S. +91 8067493865; Reuters Messaging:

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