US copper futures reached new contract highs for the third straight day Wednesday on the heels of new record highs in London as supply worries and another large stock draw on the LME were seen as catalysts for the market's bullish tone, sources said.
Dealers noted business was fairly light, however, due to the week-long National Day holiday in China, the Jewish holiday of Rosh Hashana, and the Islamic holy month of Ramadan.
"With China out of the picture this week, I think you're probably going to be looking at sideways or at least you'll see volume impacted. I don't think we'll run away here," said one. By 10:30 am EDT (1430 GMT), copper for December delivery was up 0.50 cent at $1.7710 a lb at the COMEX division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, after reaching a new life-of-contract high at $1.7720.
Spot October contract was 0.35 cent firmer at $1.8540, after it too had hit a contract peak at $1.8560 a lb. LME warehouse copper stocks dropped 1,375 tonnes to 74,975 on Tuesday. Three-months copper hit a peak of $3,854 a tonne, up from Tuesday's close at $3,838.