On Monday copper prices approached the lowest level in six weeks, after official numbers showed that China's imports of the metal were slower in the previous month.
On the Comex, copper for July delivery dipped 0.20%, to trade at $2.687 a pound during European morning hours.
Friday marked a slump for copper which dropped to $2.670, a level not seen
since April 23, before inching up 0.5 cents, or 0.2%, to settle at
$2.692.
Official
data released on Monday signaled that China’s copper arrivals in May
fell 16.3% from a month earlier to 360,000 metric tons.
Trade surplus expanded to $59.5 billion in May from $34.2 billion in April, compared to expectations for a surplus of $45.0 billion.
Chinese exports fell 2.5% from a year earlier, while imports tumbled 17.6%, worse than forecasts for a decline of 10.7%.
Weaker domestic demand signaled a rebound in the broader economy
remains vulnerable and may need further measures to stimulate it.
In the first quarter, the country's economy grew at the slowest pace in six years. In order to boost economic activity and growth, the People's Bank of China has introduced a slew of
stimulus measures since November. Those included lowering interest rates three times and
cutting the reserve requirement ratios of major banks twice.
