Copper eases as investors cash in on strong week

LONDON: Copper eased on Thursday and zinc and nickel pulled back from multi-year peaks as investors opted to cash in gains in this week's best performing metals in the face of a rally in other assets such as stocks.

Copper, chiefly used in construction, is still on track for its biggest weekly gain since November 2016, up nearly 6 percent so far on the back of optimism over global growth and dollar weakness, which benefits assets priced in the currency.

"Given that some prices have reached multi-year highs, (traders) are taking the opportunity to cash in and that is weighing on prices, especially in an environment with somewhat lower liquidity due to the absence of the Chinese traders," Commerzbank analyst Daniel Briesemann said.

Stocks and bond yields steamed higher as the dollar tumbled, as investors suddenly seemed to forget the inflation fears blamed for a brutal market sell-off in recent weeks.

The dollar slipped sharply on Wednesday after stronger than expected inflation and a weak retail sales report, and extended losses on Thursday to slide back towards last month's three-year low.