China Development Bank, one of China’s largest state-owned enterprises, has agreed to lend $10 billion to Brazil’s Petrobras (PBR) in exchange for a long-term supply of oil – the latest illustration of how Beijing is using the global downturn to further its domestic agenda.

The base metals were little changed on Thursday. Copper leapt ahead from the pre-dawn hours to mid-morning in New York, briefly popping over $1.50 before easing through the rest of the day to finish at $1.4712/lb., up 2½ cents.

The base metals were all leaking red on Tuesday. Outside of a brief morning blip up, copper declined from the pre-dawn hours straight through, finishing at its intraday low of $1.4256/lb., down 11 cents from Friday. Pretty much the same story for nickel, which closed at its intraday low of $4.4006/lb., down more than 20 cents.

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The base metals were mixed on Wednesday. Copper started down in the pre-dawn hours and, except for a brief late morning bump up, declined through the day, finishing just off its intraday lows at $1.5196/lb., down 4¾ cents.

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The base metals were on little changed on Monday. Copper fell from the pre-dawn hours to the New York open, but rallied from there through the rest of the day, finishing at $1.6116/lb., up more than a penny.

While the rest of the world is grappling with the global slowdown, China is figuring out ways to exploit it.

With the U.S. credit markets in lockdown mode, a whipsaw stock market that keeps anyone from getting too comfortable, a banking sector in chaos and a recession that clearly won’t be ending any time soon, U.S. dealmakers are looking at a market for mergers and acquisitions that’s in a virtual deep freeze.

The base metals were all glowing green on Friday. Copper rose from the pre-dawn hours to the New York open and tailed off from there, but still hung in positive territory to finish at $1.5089/lb., up 3¾ cents.