LONDON: Copper prices retreated on Tuesday on fund selling amid persistent worries about the health of the Chinese economy and metals demand after fresh data.

Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) eased 0.9% to $9,017.50 a metric ton by 1510 GMT, having gained 1.1% in the previous session.

Losses were driven by selling from computer-driven funds, which gained momentum when the US market opened, a trader said.

Data on Tuesday added to a string of recent weak numbers, with China’s unwrought copper imports sliding to a 16-month low in August and total imports missing expectations, reflecting weak demand.

“The economic story in China is definitely weak, consumers are depressed and there’s this massive overhang of unsold property,” said Dan Smith, head of research at Amalgamated Metal Trading.

A trader in Asia expected copper to fall to $8,450 a ton. Smith, however, said the picture was not all gloomy.

“Overall, we shouldn’t be too pessimistic about the outlook for base metals. The electronics side of things and solar PV are doing quite well in China,” he said, referring to photovoltaic (PV) technology used in solar panels. Demand was growing at an average of 16% in six electronics business sectors in China up to July, Smith added.

He expects copper to rise moderately in the coming months and end the year at about $9,500 a ton.

Another positive signal was a rise in the premium to import copper into China to $65 a ton, its strongest in more than eight months.

The most traded October copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) closed 1.4% up at 73,110 yuan ($10,268.40) a ton, tracking overnight gains in London.

In other metals, LME aluminium slipped 0.5% to $2,338 a ton, nickel eased 1.1% to $15,735, tin lost 0.9% to $30,545, while lead added 0.1% to $1,955.50.