US MIDDAY: copper down

Copper ended lower on Friday, building upon the 2.4-percent loss recorded in the first quarter, as a lull in Chinese buying and a rising trend in inventories continued to reflect near-term demand weakness. Copper's losses at the start of the new quarter bucked the firmer tone in US equities, which raced to their highest level since June 2008 after data showed a second straight month of solid gains in jobs and a slight drop in unemployment, which stood at two-year lows.
COMEX May copper shed 4.90 cents to settle at $4.2585 per lb.