US copper futures advanced about 3 percent on Friday, as signs indicated that the red metal had finally fallen to levels attractive to consumers and bargain hunters, traders said. "(The buying) started in London, because of Chinese buying overnight. And we've been noticing some evidence of consumers starting to come in and buy," said one copper broker.
He added that even on Wednesday, buying in outer-month contracts suggested that consumers were beginning to return to the copper market. Copper for December delivery traded up 7.85 cents, or 2.72 percent, at $2.9665 a lb on the New York Mercantile Exchange's Comex division.
Brokers said post-holiday trade was exceptionally slow and most of the gains to the session high of $2.9955 a lb came at the open with little follow-up business. In early electronic trade December copper slid to its a low last seen on March 15, but quickly rebounded.
Many players will be watching to see how retail stores fare on so-called Black Friday, which pushes many retailers into profitable regions for the first time of the year. Analysts are looking for indications at to how robust consumer buying will be this holiday season as a sign of US economic strength.