Copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) remained subdued in thin trade on Monday, the first day of this week's annual LME Dinner meeting, after profit-taking pulled the metal down from 16-year highs.
Three months copper was at $3,121/25 a tonne in the afternoon second rings, down from Friday's late kerb close of $3,145. In Asia, the market had briefly touched $3,177.50, the highest since January 1989.
"Overall trade was very thin," said a trader. "We saw profit-taking in copper in early trade."
But traders said the copper market was supported by strikes at the top unit of Chile's Codelco, the world largest producer, and at Atlantic Copper's smelting plant in Huelva, Spain.
"With LME stocks falling, the strikes in Chile and Spain have lent support to the market," another trader said.
On Sunday Codelco said the three-day strike had not hurt production. Striking workers shut down Atlantic Copper's smelting in Huelva, Spain, for the second time in three days on Monday with the latest of their programmed one-day strikes, company and union officials said.
In other activity, most base metals moved lower in slow trade, except zinc, as many of the big buyers stood back from the market and many players were absent for this week's annual LME meetings and events.
Support for copper was seen on dips towards $3,100 and then the recent upside break-out point near $3,080. The upside target was the all-time high of $3,280 in early 1989.
Aluminium closed at $1,856, down $24 from Friday's kerb.
Zinc bucked the trend, with renewed fund buying lifting the metal to $1,187, up $16 from the previous close and just under four-year highs.
Traders said the market, which had underperformed in the base metals bull-run, was still catching up. Lead eased $7 to $968, while nickel dropped to $16,150/16,200 from $17,000.
Tin ticked up to $9,200 from $9,190.
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