Copper, tin slides as China, Fed and COVID-19 trigger sell-off

TIN: Prices of the soldering metal crashed 7.1% at $32,855 a tonne. Low liquidity makes tin prices extremely volatile during times of stress.

LONDON: Copper prices dropped on Thursday to their lowest level in more than four months on a major selloff sparked by China reining in growth, the U.S. central bank signposting its intention to reduce stimulus and rising COVID-19 cases.

Benchmark copper on the London Metal Exchange was down 1.6% at $8,901 a tonne at 1600 GMT after earlier hitting $8,740 a tonne, the lowest level since April 1.