Comex copper futures finished an abbreviated pre-holiday session with modest gains on Friday, after recovering from bout of profit-taking, traders said.
Copper set a new 7-3/4-year top on weakness in the dollar against other currencies, especially the euro, before the greenback later strengthened.
"I think what we saw late in the session was in-sympathy profit-taking with the other metals when they started getting hit by the currencies," said Scott Meyers, a senior-trading analyst at Pioneer Futures.
"The dollar was very weak on, then it turned up very sharply. Copper tried to stay firm. It was the last metal to give way," Meyers added.
Eventually, traders said, copper succumbed to selling pressure, with players setting up for a three-day holiday weekend that follows a huge move in the copper price, which rose 8.40 cents in the past three sessions.
Nymex closed copper trading an hour, at 12:05 p.m. EST (1705 GMT) on Friday, ahead of the US Presidents Day holiday on Monday, when the Comex exchange will be closed.
Benchmark March copper finished 0.20 cent higher at $1.2435 a lb. It rose briefly to $1.2590, a fresh peak dating back to May 1996 on a continuation chart.
The low was $1.2330. Spot February also climbed to a new high dating back to May 1996 at $1.2460 a lb then closed up 0.20 cent at $1.2445.
A few later-dated contracts also set new highs on Friday. Other dates settled with 0.15 cent to 2.20 cents gains. Comex estimated final copper volume at 25,000 lots, similar to the 25,811 contracts traded on Thursday.
On Thursday's open interest fell by 1,378 lots to 85,231. Copper was able to find its footing by the close after following the euro sharply lower in a profit-taking spree.
The dollar recovered suddenly when a European bank sold 2 billion euros to support the dollar, reportedly on behalf of the European Central Bank.
That erased the dollar's steep losses from, when the Commerce Department's report showed the US trade gap widened more than expected.
The US international trade deficit for December was $42.48 billion, wider than economists' consensus forecasts for a deficit of $40.0 billion.
The dollar extended its declines after a sharp drop in the University of Michigan consumer sentiment survey for February, and pushed copper prices even higher.
Dollar losses offer investors in dollar-denominated copper an advantage in overseas markets.
Traders said they see copper purchases continuing next week, though it may get sold off in a temporary corrective move, if the dollar firms.
If so, traders said, copper's strength still would not be undermined.
"This doesn't change anything in terms of the overall complexion of the (copper) market.
I think it's still very bullish. The fact that it was a positive settlement and made new contract highs, I don't think this (late selling) is damaging to the chart at all," Meyers said.
One technical trader said he saw the May 1996 high at $1.2660 a lb. as a near-term goal for March copper.
If that target level breaks, he said, $1.30 is possible next week.
London Metal Exchange three-month copper rallied to $2,727 per tonne, a high dating back to December 1995, but closed the on Friday evening kerb lower at $2,690.
On Friday's session low was $2,674, but buyers defended that level twice from assault by profit-takers.
On Thursday's close was $2,702. Comex is a division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.
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