Shanghai Futures Exchange copper cut early losses of about 1 percent to end up 0.2 percent at 47,610 yuan ($6,923) a tonne on Friday on supply concerns and Chinese trade data that underscored stronger demand prospects for the metal. China reported better-than-expected trade data for January as demand picked up both at home and abroad, an encouraging start to 2017 for the world's largest trading nation.
January exports rose 7.9 percent from a year earlier as global demand perked up, while imports expanded 16.7 percent on improved domestic appetite for coal, crude oil and iron ore, preliminary data from the General Administration of Customs showed on Friday.
"The broader import/export numbers look strong which is interesting. It's not as gloomy as the market was expecting," said analyst Lachlan Shaw at UBS in Melbourne.
China's imports of copper fell 14 percent in January from a year ago as demand from the world's top consumer and producer slowed ahead of the earlier than usual Lunar New Year holiday, General Administration of Customs data showed on Friday.