Chile's quake fuels rally in Asia's mining sector

TOKYO (MarketWatch) -- Asia's mining sector rallied Monday as traders pored over the latest reports of disruptions to metals production in the wake of the massive earthquake in resource-rich Chile.

Shares of Asia's metals producers posted broad gains, and copper prices on Globex climbed by as much as 6%.

"Having the world's largest copper producer crimped should enable other suppliers, including Asia miners, to move in quickly to pick up slack," said Patrick Kerr, a managing director at Amerifutures Commodities & Options.

A massive 8.8-magnitude earthquake shook Chile on Saturday, reportedly killing more than 700 people.

Media reports over the weekend said that up to one-fifth of the copper-mining capacity for the nation, which exports a third of the world's copper supply, was halted after the quake.

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