Copper slipped in relatively thin trade on Monday as oil prices dropped, with the market shrugging off a European debt deal for Greece and attention shifting to upcoming testimony by the US central bank chief. Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange ended down 0.39 percent to $5,671 after a 1 percent loss in the previous session.
A deal agreed by euro zone finance ministers on Friday to extend debt-laden Greece's bailout for four months boosted sentiment in some markets, but the accord provided Athens with breathing space rather than a long-term solution to its woes. "We've bought a bit of time, but has anything fundamentally changed? I'm not sure," said Nic Brown, head of commodities research at Natixis in London.
"You could very quickly get the market flipping from being positive now that we have a deal on Greece to being a little concerned about what the Fed might do later in the year." On Tuesday, markets will focus on testimony by Federal Reserve Chair Janet Yellen before the Senate Banking Committee amid keen interest over whether the Fed will hike rates in June.
Also weighing on copper was a fall in oil prices, with Brent futures dropping below $60 a barrel. Helping dampen losses was a report late on Friday saying global world refined copper market showed a 42,000 tonne deficit in November, compared with a 29,000 tonne deficit in October.
Volumes on the LME were still relatively thin as top buyer China remained on a week-long break for the Lunar New Year holiday. China's stock, bond, foreign exchange and commodity futures markets will resume trade on February 25. "Copper is in a range, and I don't think it's just restricted to copper. Oil is also in a range and trying to find a low," said Jonathan Barratt, chief investment officer at Ayers Alliance in Sydney.
Nickel ended up 1.22 percent at $14,125 a tonne after hitting a one-year low on Friday, while zinc ended down 0.2 percent at $2,046 after touching a fresh five-week trough earlier in the session. Aluminium fell 0.11 percent to end at $1,791 a tonne after touching a five-week low, lead fell 0.42 percent to close at $1,764.50 and tin was ended up 0.56 percent at $18,000. Premiums offered for aluminium imported into the US East Coast have fallen sharply in the past week, as sellers aggressively targeted the US market amid sluggish demand in Europe and Asia.
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