US copper futures edged higher early on the back of better-than-expected US third-quarter growth data, but the advance was expected to be held in check ahead of the Federal Reserve's decision on US interest rates expected later on Wednesday, brokers said.
"We had a little reaction in the equities and the treasuries off of the numbers, but we really didn't see much movement in the metals," said Frank Lesh, broker and futures analyst with Future Path Trading in Chicago. "They want to see what the fate of the dollar is here, and hear what the Fed has to say. The statement going forward will probably have as much power to move markets as the deed itself."
Copper for December delivery was up 1.15 cents to $3.4930 a lb by 9:31 am EDT (1331 GMT) on the New York Mercantile Exchange's Comex division, and close to the upper end of its $3.4485-$3.5040 trading band. Futures volumes were on the light side, with 2,701 lots estimated by 9 am.
Gross domestic product that measures total production within US borders unexpectedly edged higher to a 3.9 percent annual rate, up from 3.8 percent in the second quarter for the strongest quarterly growth since 4.8 percent in the first quarter of 2006, the Commerce Department reported.