Copper closed down for a fourth consecutive day on Thursday, hitting its lowest in more than a week, as rising inflation pressures in top-consumer China continued to muddy shorter-term demand prospects. COMEX May copper settled with a 1.05-cent loss at $4.2840 per lb. The losses have pulled both London and New York copper prices down about 8 percent from their mid-February records at $10,190 and $4.6575, respectively.