US copper futures posted moderate gains Tuesday morning as they took a half-hearted cue from prospects for a Chilean strike later this week and a softer dollar, traders said.
"There's really not much going on today. I think we're higher because there are a lot of shorts out there who can't really sell any more right now," said one broker.
On the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, benchmark December copper was up 0.30 cent at $1.40 per lb, trading from $1.3910 to $1.4050 which fell short of the July 1995 high hit on Monday and last Thursday at $1.4080 a lb.
Spot October gained 0.10 cent to $1.4020. Little other action took place, with a few contracts even to up 0.50 cent. COMEX estimated copper volume at a light 3,000 lots by 1000 am EDT (1400 GMT), with only four contract months trading by midmorning.