Copper closed below earlier record highs on the London Metal Exchange on Wednesday, but dealers said the market was poised for further gains. "I think were are in for new highs. If the dollar weakens it will happen. Longer-term, though, we are reaching a peak - perhaps $3,400/420 for copper," one LME trader said.
"That won't last long and we will head back to more normal levels, but in a fairly ordered way," he added.
Three-months copper ended at $3,292 a tonne, up $54 from Tuesday's London kerb close.
Copper earlier jumped to $3,305/10 in inter-office trade and $3,307 on LME Select.
"This is a good close and Shanghai could move higher on Thursday, reflecting good domestic demand," the trader said.
A wider-than-expected US current account deficit weighed on the dollar but that did not provoke fresh metals buying.
The euro rose to $1.3422 at 1715 GMT versus $1.3385 before the data and $1.3303 in late US trade.
Copper's strength meant analysts were considering raising near-term forecasts.
"We have adjusted our copper price forecast upwards, and now expect three-month prices to average $2,925 (a tonne) in the second quarter, falling to $2,500 by the end of the year," investment bank Goldman Sachs said in a note.
Other metals were steady.
Aluminium was $4 higher at $1,998, supported by a 3,850-tonne decline in LME stocks. It earlier rose to $2,014, just below Friday's 10-year peak of $2,016.
Zinc was $1 lower at $1,439. The metal earlier set a fresh 7-1/2-year high of $1,450.
"If copper spikes again we'll see zinc towards $1,500," the trader said.
Nickel was up $50 at $16,000, lead fell $3 to $962 and tin was $50 softer at $8,550.
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