SINGAPORE, Sept 28 (Reuters) - London copper prices on Monday rose for a second straight session, climbing 1% on expectations of strong demand from top importer China and a U.S. stimulus in the works.
Asian markets were powered by signs that China's economic recovery was gaining momentum with pent-up demand, fiscal stimulus and surprisingly resilient exports boosting sentiment across the region.
"China's manufacturing is expected to pick up this month and our estimate is that the growth in infrastructure sector will remain strong for rest of the year, driving demand for industrial metals and iron ore," said Vivek Dhar, a commodities strategist at Commonwealth Bank of Australia in Melbourne.
* Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange rose 1% to $6,607.50 a tonne, as of 0715 GMT and the most-traded copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange closed up 1.3% to 51,220 yuan ($7,507.84) a tonne.
* In August, data showed industrial output in China, the world's top consumer of metals, accelerated the most in eight months.
* Democrats in the House of Representatives are working on a $2.2 trillion coronavirus stimulus package.
* Still, a higher U.S. dollar, which makes greenback-priced commodities more expensive for holders of other currencies, could weigh on prices.
* The dollar hovered near a two-month peak against a basket of currencies on Monday as investors look to a barrage of upcoming economic data and political developments in the United States before making any fresh bets on the U.S. currency.
* Zambia will remove import duty on copper ores and concentrates to encourage local processing, Finance Minister Bwalya Ng'andu said in a budget speech delivered in parliament on Friday.
* Africa's second largest copper producer saw its export earnings from the metal in the first half of the year fall 14.8% to $2.3 billion due to a drop in prices, he added.
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PRICES
Three month LME copper
Most active ShFE copper
Three month LME aluminium
Most active ShFE aluminium
Three month LME zinc
Most active ShFE zinc
Three month LME lead
Most active ShFE lead
Three month LME nickel
Most active ShFE nickel
Three month LME tin
Most active ShFE tin
ARBS ($1 = 6.8222 yuan) (Reporting by Naveen Thukral; Editing by Vinay Dwivedi and Sherry Jacob-Phillips)