Copper futures in New York extended their weekly gains at the open on Wednesday, tracking the strength in overseas markets and prompting traders to cover their short positions heading into the extended holiday break, sources said.
COMEX copper futures trading will shut on Thursday and Friday for the US Thanksgiving holiday. Trading will resume on Monday, November 27.
"We opened higher on the strength seen out of Asia and London's break above $7,000 (a tonne). The volumes are pretty thin down here...it looks like some covering. I don't think guys want to take any chances being short before the break," said one COMEX floor dealer.
By 10:37 am EST (1537 GMT), copper for March delivery traded up 1.35 cents at $3.1610 a lb on the New York Mercantile Exchange's COMEX division, moving between $3.1385 and $3.2050.
December copper gained 1.95 cents to $3.1350, after dealing in a $3.1070-$3.1710 trading band. Spot November was bid at $3.13. COMEX copper volume at 10:00 am was estimated at 6,000 lots, with 1,260 lots of spreads exchanging hands. COMEX rollover from December copper into March continued to play out, with speculative players repositioning their holdings to avoid taking actual physical delivery of the metal when delivery begins on November 30.