Base metals buckled early on Thursday under the weight of slowing economic growth concerns in the United States after another round of data disappointed in front of Friday's key jobs report. Copper retreated to its lowest level in one week after data ranging from stubbornly high jobless claims to lackluster chain-store sales and declining factory orders presented further evidence of a slowdown in the world's largest economy.
In New York, technical pressure added to the macro-economic worries, as prices pierced both the 20- and 200-day moving averages at one point.