COMEX copper futures were slightly higher in volatile early business on Tuesday, with the market receiving support from a weaker dollar and a US economic report that showed a benign core inflation reading for April, sources said.
"We received a little pop after the PPI (Producer Price Index) numbers, but it's very choppy right now. We did some damage yesterday, so I think it's going to settle in here for a while to see what direction it will take," said on COMEX floor dealer.
Copper for July delivery was up 1.35 cents at $3.76 a lb by 10:32 am EDT (1432 GMT) on the New York Mercantile Exchange's COMEX division, near the upper end of its $3.55-$3.78 trading band.
Spot May rose 2.10 cents to $3.89, just shy of its early session high at $3.8980. Last week, the front-month contract rallied to an all-time COMEX record at $4.16 a lb. COMEX copper volume at 10 am was estimated at only 4,000 lots.