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Last week, copper prices continued the decline at the end of last week, falling by 1,900 yuan/ton, closing at 26,540 yuan/ton. LME copper inventories continued their upward trend, increasing by more than 10,000 tons, reaching 528,000 tons. LME copper spot prices fell and remained steady, hovering around $37. There has been constant bad news about the U.S. economy this week, with all three major stock indexes falling sharply, including the Dow Jones Index, which fell below 7,500 points and hit a new low in this bear market. The gloomy global economic situation has triggered market concerns about copper demand. The impact of China's factors on copper prices has weakened, leading to the continued weakening of copper prices. Data released by the Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) on Wednesday showed that the gross domestic product (GDP) of advanced economies in the last three months of 2008 recorded the largest decline in about half a century. The OECD announced that the overall GDP of its 30 member countries in the fourth quarter of 2008 fell by 1.5% from the third quarter and 1.1% from the fourth quarter of 2007. U.S. housing starts fell for a seventh consecutive month in January, while building permits also fell sharply as high housing inventories and a recession prompted builders to further cut construction activity. The U.S. Department of Commerce announced that after seasonal adjustments, new housing starts fell 16.8% in January from the previous month, to an annual rate of 466,000 units. ； Housing starts fell 14.5% in December from the previous month to an annualized rate of 560,000 units. The World Bureau of Metal Statistics (WBMS) announced that from January to December 2008, the global copper market had a surplus of 329,000 tons, and in 2007, the copper market had a supply shortage of 119,000 tons. Today, the global economic situation is still severe and there are no signs of improvement. The continued sluggish demand for copper has led to high inventories. The actual fundamentals are very unfavorable to copper prices. ； On the other hand, the launch and gradual implementation of the global rescue plan has injected confidence into the market. As long as there is no major change in this situation, it is more likely that copper prices will continue to fluctuate and consolidate. Investors will have less risk of short selling after the copper price rebounds. It is not advisable to buy the bottom or chase the rise. Haixin Steel Information Network ( http://www.hxsteel.cn )