US copper futures fell almost 5 percent early on Wednesday, ending near eight-month lows as worries about the economy weakened investor appetite for risk.
"It's more of the same," said Eric Wittenauer, futures analyst with A.G. Edwards in St. Louis, Missouri. "We're going to continue to see prices under pressure in the weeks ahead as economic concerns and an emerging surplus continue to play out against one another, and that proves bearish for copper."
Copper for December delivery settled down 13.90 cents, or 4.59 percent, at $2.8880 a lb on the New York Mercantile Exchange's Comex division, after dealing between $3.0425 and $2.8815, its lowest level since March 16. "We're taking out some big numbers hitting some (sell) stops back down below the $2.95 level and on down to $2.90," said Scott Meyers, senior trading analyst with Pioneer Futures in New York. "It's just nervous market conditions. We're in lock with the stock market. Stocks went down to 12,800 and copper's below $3.00, so until the stock market turns around, copper will be in the dumps."
Volatility was high, with investors positioning themselves ahead of a holiday break in the US. Open interest in Comex copper futures fell 358 lots to 77,837 contracts as of November 21. Workers at the mine, owned by global miner BHP Billiton, blocked access to the mine to protest the "unjustified" firing of fellow employees. BHP said its operations were normal and that the blockade had been lifted.
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