BEIJING, June 1 -- Commodity counters listed on Chinese mainland bourses look set to continue to rise this year, helped by sustainable demand for metals but analysts cautioned a short-term correction may appear after recent rallies.

    Non-ferrous metal producers including Jiangxi Copper Co and Hunan Zhuye Torch Metals Co have been sought after by investors this year as commodity prices surged on international markets, driven by mounting demand on economic growth and investment needs.

    "Metal chips have a rosy long-term prospect backed by strong demand," said Wang Xiaomin, a Xiangcai Securities analyst, in a note. "I recommend investors pile into these shares again after the current round of profit taking fades out."

    Jiangxi Copper, China's biggest listed producer of the metal, has jumped 149 percent this year, against a 42 percent gain for the benchmark Shanghai Composite Index.

    Although the shares have dropped nearly 30 percent from a record 17.14 yuan (US$2.14) set on May 15, 11 out of 15 domestic brokers have a "buy" recommendation on the stock, according to Wind Information Co.

    Jiangxi Copper posted a more-than-expected 69 percent gain in 2005 profit and first-quarter net income almost doubled. It plans to boost production capacity to 700,000 metric tons in 2007, from 400,000 tons now and will more than triple its capital spending to 3.5 billion yuan this year, from 1 billion yuan in 2005.