The most-traded May copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange gained half a percent to 60,370 yuan ($9,600) a tonne on Wednesday. "Copper prices are likely to remain range bound in the short term, before we see any improvement in demand," said a Shanghai-based trader.
"But in the medium term, copper has a chance to break higher with seasonal demand picking up and liquidity in China increasing." Wang Chenyu, an analyst at Minmetals Futures, said he expects Shanghai copper to test the earlier high around 62,200 yuan in the short term.