Shanghai Futures Exchange copper fell 1.4 percent to 50,400 yuan ($8,030) a tonne on Thursday. Markets came under pressure on Thursday as the threat of imminent US military action in Syria rattled investors and sent oil prices higher on concerns about potential disruptions to supply and distribution.
"The metals seem to have slipped back into following the global equity markets and thus prices are lower today as Asian stocks lose ground," said Kingdom Futures in a report. "The markets will certainly be more nervous than usual as people watch out for the US response to Syria."
Industry sources said that the drop in prices was fuelled by talk that China's State Reserve Bureau had been selling zinc stocks, although several traders dismissed the talk as having been around in the market for several weeks.
"It's supposed to be 50,000 tonnes - that's not really enough to impact the market," one trader said. The SRB did not immediately reply to a faxed request for comment.
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