UPDATE 1-LME copper up 2.2 pct ahead of US bailout vote

By Nick Trevethan

SINGAPORE, Oct 1 (Reuters) - London copper rose 2.2 percent
on Wednesday after bouncing off an 18-month low in the previous
session, ahead of a vote on the revised $700 billion bailout
plan that U.S. lawmakers hope will free up financial markets.

In addition to allowing the Treasury to buy problem
mortgage debt from banks, the latest draft includes an increase
in the amount of bank deposits insured by the government to
$250,000 from $100,000, a Senate aide said. [ID:nN30478001]

London Metal Exchange copper MCU3 rose $140 to $6,500 a
tonne by 0651 GMT. On Tuesday, prices fell to $6,170, its
lowest level since March 2007, before paring losses to close
down $80 on the day at $8,360.

"There is still potential for a post-summer, post-Olympics
rebound in copper. Traders took advantage of the lack of
Chinese support to test lower in the past few days and it might
have been overdone," William Adams, analyst at BaseMetals.com

"But volumes are high, possibly Chinese buying cheap LME
hoping to cash in on an arbitrage opportunity. Whether they
chase prices higher once both markets are working remains to
seen."

Turnover during Asian trading on LME Select was a healthy
1,165 lots.

Shanghai markets remained shut for week-long National Day
holidays and other markets in Asia are out on Wednesday for Eid
al-Fitr holidays to mark the end of the Muslim fasting month of
Ramadan.

Other metals also stabilised after steep falls. On Tuesday,
aluminium touched an eight-month low of $2,405 and nickel fell
to $15,588, its lowest since April 2006. On Wednesday,
aluminium MAL3 rose $17 to $2,442, and nickel MNI3 gained
$350 or 2.2 percent to $16,150.

Supportive fundamentals news, including a strike at a
copper-zinc operation in Canada, a strike threat in Poland and
the shutdown of a U.S. aluminium smelter, lent a tentative hand
to sentiment, but analysts said that might be drowned out by
hubbub from Washington. [ID:nN01480186] [ID:nN30292900]

Union workers at Xstrata's (XTA.L: Quote, Profile, Research) Kidd metallurgical
operations went on strike early on Wednesday after talks with
the company failed to produce a contract agreement.

"We're out officially right now," said Hemi Mitic,
assistant to the president of the Canadian Auto Workers union,
which represents the 600 workers at the site in northern
Ontario.

The Kidd operations, which have had two other work stoppages
in the past decade, produce about 125,000 tonnes of copper
cathode and 140,000 tonnes of zinc. [ID:nN01480186]

Workers at Poland's state-controlled copper producer KGHM
KGHM.WA will vote in the middle of October on whether to
strike over wages, the head of one of its largest trade unions
said.

"We will hold a referendum over strike action from October
14 to 16," Ryszard Zbrzyzny, the head of one of KGHM's two
largest unions, ZZPPM, told Reuters.

"If the outcome is positive the trade unions will decide on
October 20 whether to go on strike," he added. [ID:nLU216116]
Base metals prices at 0651 GMT
Metal Last Change Pct Move End 2007 Pct chg
08
LME Cu 6500.00 140.00 +2.20 6670.00
-2.55
LME Alum 2442.00 17.00 +0.70 2403.00
1.62
LME Zinc 1675.00 -5.00 -0.30 2370.00
-29.32
LME Nickel 16150.00 350.00 +2.22 26350.00
-38.71
LME Lead 1860.00 30.00 +1.64 2550.00
-27.06
LME Tin 17410.00 160.00 +0.93 16400.00
6.16
(Reporting by Nick Trevethan; Editing by Michael Urquhart)