US copper slides

COMEX copper prices closed with steep losses on Monday, failing to recover despite a surge in sales of new US homes, amid near-term economic outlooks in the US, UK and China that offer little reason to push industrial metals beyond current lofty levels. Benchmark May copper contracts on COMEX in New York finished down 2.20 percent, or 9.70 cents, at $4.3030 per lb.
Copper stocks monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange fell 5.8 percent last week to 139,076 tonnes, their lowest since mid-February. For now, copper is seen trading in a $4.25 to $4.50 band, with new buyers seen emerging at the lower end of that range.