US copper futures surrendered morning gains on Tuesday, as lingering concerns about slowing economic growth and its effect on demand continued to keep the metal's upside in check, brokers and analysts said.
"We're seeing a bounce, but not a real good one, as you would expect some shorts to be covering," said one dealer at a West Coast trading house. "We're not seeing a lot of follow-through selling or profit-taking either, which may suggest that this lower trend may continue," he said.
Copper for December delivery was trading down 1.90 cents to $3.09 a lb by 10:56 am EST (1556 GMT) on the New York Mercantile Exchange's Comex division, near the bottom of its early 7-cent range between $3.07 and $3.1455.
Futures volumes were estimated at 7,728 lots by 10 am. Since its most recent high of $3.78 a lb in early October, the benchmark December copper contract has shed nearly 20 percent of its value amid worries about slower economic growth in the United States, rising global inventory levels, and slower consumption growth in China, the world's leading copper consumer.
Chinese copper imports fell 5.6 percent to 204,424 tonnes in October from 216,643 tonnes in September. Further proof of the market's current weak state of demand has been reflected in rising visible supply in London copper warehouses which have increased more than 80 percent since July.