US copper futures eased Thursday morning as some trade sales and more profit-taking kept prices on the defensive against the backdrop of a firmer dollar, brokers said. There was some speculative buying at early lows, they said. "There's not too much to say this morning. We tested some overnight lows and now we're just bouncing around unchanged," said one floor source.
At the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, benchmark May copper was off 0.60 cent at $1.50 a lb, dealing from $1.4960 to $1.51. The contract peak, hit on March 8, is $1.5210.
Spot March copper was 10 cent easier at $1.5050 but held within reach of a contract high above $1.5230. On a spot continuation level, this would be the best level the contract has seen since late 1988.
At 9:00 am EST (1400 GMT), COMEX estimated copper volume was a light 3,000 lots.