US copper futures climbed at the open Friday as investors returned to the buy-side of the market following Thursday's 4 percent sell-off, while news of a new labour strike in Chile supported the gains, sources said.
By 10:25 am EDT (1425 GMT), copper for July delivery was trading up 7.70 cents, or 2.4 percent, at $3.2580 a lb on the New York Mercantile Exchange's COMEX division, after dealing from an early session low at $3.17 to $3.29.
Spot May rose 10.00 cents at $3.36. On Wednesday, COMEX copper set an all-time record at $3.50 a lb, based on a spot continuation. COMEX copper volume at 10 am was estimated at only 5,000 lots, with 802 lots in switches.