Comex copper futures rallied on Friday but ended below fresh four-month highs as a sharp drop in the dollar sparked technical buying by funds and the trade, with a copper mine accident on Thursday in Chile lending support, traders and analysts said.
Active September copper settled up 5.05 cents, or 3.98 percent, at $1.3180 a lb. on the New York Mercantile Exchanges Comex division, after trading from $1.2620 to $1.3350 to mark its loftiest since April.
Metals markets rose across the board on Friday as the dollar tumbled on a double dose of unexpectedly weak trade and consumer sentiment data, which triggered base metals buying in foreign currencies.
Floor traders said copper also climbed on news that five workers died on Thursday in an accident at Chillies El Soldered copper mine, owned by South Africa-based Anglo-American Plc, in a disaster that so far had not affected production.
Final estimated Comex volume reached 26,000 contracts. Although the catalyst for rallies in metals has been falls in the dollar, low copper inventories and signs of renewed Chinese consumer buying also have supported prices this week, traders and analysts said.