Shanghai Futures Exchange copper ended the session down 1.5 percent at 40,130 yuan ($6,465) a tonne on Monday after euro zone officials reached a debt deal with Greece, with tentative signs of economic revival in China's trade data also supporting prices. ShFE nickel fell as much as 4 percent as it continues last week's wild swings, before settling down 2.3 percent.
The Shanghai contract, launched this year, has attracted speculative interest that is battling weak stainless steel demand and an impending supply crunch, as China's mills are expected to substitute refined nickel for cheaper nickel pig iron after Indonesia banned ore exports last year. China's export sales unexpectedly rose for the first time in four months in June and imports fell again but posted their best performance this year, causing some optimism tepid trade flows are picking up.
"China's property sector has been the dominant driver of weak commodity prices in the past 12-24 months and the property cycle has weakened this past year," said Dan Morgan, an analyst at UBS in Sydney. "Last week was hugely volatile and nickel has been thrown the furthest from fundamentals. Out of all of them I think nickel presents the best opportunity," Morgan said.