London copper steady, global growth outlook supports

SYDNEY, June 5 (Reuters): London copper was steady on Thursday, underpinned by robust U.S. economic data and comments from China suggesting it had warded off a slowdown in growth.
Shanghai copper prices calmed despite worries about a probe into metals financing at China's third largest port.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was little changed at $6,788 a tonne by 0132 GMT, after falling 1.2 per cent in the previous session to its lowest in three weeks at $6,760 a tonne.
The most-traded August copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange edged down 0.3 per cent to 48,070 yuan ($7,700) a tonne.
US companies hired far fewer workers than expected in May, but an acceleration in service sector growth supported views the economy was regaining strength after sagging early this year.
China has stepped up efforts to stop quarterly economic growth falling towards 7 per cent and thinks it has been successful for now after preliminary signs that a rapid slowdown has been arrested, sources involved in policy discussions say.
Price cuts by euro zone firms failed to prevent business growth from losing momentum in May, all but sealing the case for looser monetary policy a day before the European Central Bank meets.
Worries over a probe into commodity stockpile financing at China's Qingdao port appeared to deepen on Wednesday as Standard Bank Group and a part-owned unit of Louis Dreyfus Corp warned of potential losses and copper prices fell further. [ID:nID:L6N0OL4MP]
Foreign copper miners in Indonesia have agreed in principle to pay a controversial export tax, the country's deputy finance minister said, following a series of talks aimed at restarting concentrate exports after a near-five-month halt.