By KENNEDY MUPESENI –

COPPER prices on the London Metal Exchange (LME) did not change much as a weaker dollar cushioned prices that had been undermined by still sluggish Chinese demand.
The prices for three month copper on the LME traded at US$5,845.50 a tonne after closing nearly flat in the previous session.
The Gold prices were close to their lowest in more than three months as traders waited for the week’s Federal Reserve policy meeting to gauge the timing of a US rate increase.
The price for spot gold increased by 0.1 per cent to US$1,154.96 an ounce, close to last week’s levels of US$1,147.10, the lowest since December 1, 2015.
Oil prices on the international market dropped below US$54 a barrel yesterday, reversing gains made earlier in the day as concerns over surplus stocks weighed on the market.
Prices on the other side of the Atlantic fell for a sixth session to above six-year low, keeping their discount to Brent at near US$10, a trend that analysts say could deepen.
REUTERS reports that Brent, which rose to a session high of US$54.38, was trading at US$53.59, down by 35 cents.
Reuters explained that the April contract that expired in the previous session closed down by US$1.23 after hitting US$52.50 earlier on
Monday, its lowest since February 2 2015.
The United States (US) crude, or West Texas Intermediate (WTI), was at US$43.41 a barrel, down by 47 cents and slightly above six year lows of US$42.85 touched on Monday.
“We expect WTI to remain under pressure as inventories swell further as the seasonal maintenance period begins. We expect this to remain the case in the short term,” ANZ bank said.
On the local market, the Kwacha has continued on its depreciation path and yesterday ranged K7.30  to K7.50  against the US dollar.
A check by Times of Zambia in Lusaka at some bureaux showed that the local currency on average depreciated by two ngwee.
At Flex Bureau de Change, the Kwacha was buying and selling at K7.30 and K7.50 against the greenback respectively while at Bimm Bureau de-Change it was between K7.22 and 7.43.
The Kwacha is expected to remain under pressure in short to medium-term because of the strong appetite from the greenback that is creating a bearish theme and exacerbated by the dollar global strength.