The most-traded August copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange hit a nearly two week peak, before trimming gains to close at 55,140 yuan ($8,900) a tonne on Wednesday, still up 0.40 percent. "Entering March, traders were more active in the market, helped by a more attractive price differential between London and Shanghai," said Wan Ling, a metals analyst at CRU in Beijing.
China's March copper arrivals rose 7.2 percent from a month ago on hopes factories will resume output after the Lunar New Year break, but fell by a sharp 30 percent from a year ago, indicating the pickup in demand was not as strong as expected.