US copper futures fell at Friday's open amid some investor profit-taking, but prices steadied at slightly lower levels after a solid June jobs report signalled a pickup in US economic growth, traders said.
"The jobs report came in better than expected. The numbers are showing a pretty strong rebound in growth and that is helping to push the copper up," said one COMEX floor dealer, referring to the industrial metal's link to underlying economic strength.
Copper for September delivery was down 1.60 cents to $3.5775 a lb by 10:10 am EDT (1410 GMT) at the New York Mercantile Exchange's COMEX division, dealing from $3.5625 to $3.5930.
Futures volume was estimated at 3,840 lots by 9:00 am EDT. US employers added a solid 132,000 new jobs in June and boosted payrolls more strongly than previously thought in April and May, according to a Labour Department report that underlined a strengthening job market. The June hiring figure topped forecasts for 120,000 jobs made by Wall Street economists surveyed by Reuters.
And the government said some 75,000 more jobs than it previously estimated were created in April and May - a surprisingly solid pace of hiring throughout the second quarter that signalled a pickup in the pace of economic growth after a first-quarter lull.Falling copper stockpiles in global exchange-monitored warehouses and supply threats, particularly in Chile, continued to keep the red metal well supported, analysts said.
One of Chile's largest copper mines, Collahuasi, and its workers were struggling to reach a new wage deal on Friday to head-off a strike that could start early next week. Union leaders and managers at the mine, which is located in northern Chile and produces 440,000 tonnes of copper per year, talked into the early hours of Friday but were unable to agree on a new contract.
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