SHANGHAI- Copper prices flitted within a narrow range on Tuesday as traders took a cautious stance ahead of the US interest rate decision later this week.
Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) was up 0.2 percent at $9,076.5 per metric ton.
The most-traded January copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange was up 0.2 percent to 74,650 yuan ($10,245.11) a ton.
The US Federal Reserve will announce its interest rate decision on Wednesday, and interest rate futures imply a 94 percent chance of a reduction, even as services-sector activity leapt to a three-year high, according to an S&P Global purchasing managers survey.
China’s economic data on Monday showed disappointing retail sales in November, keeping alive calls for Beijing to ramp up its consumer-focused stimulus.
Industrial output growth quickened slightly in the world’s top consumer of the metal.
LME aluminum was down 0.4 percent at $2,555.5 a ton, zinc rose 0.2 percent to $3,060.5, lead was up 0.4 percent at $2,008, tin rose 0.4 percent to $29,350, while nickel was down 0.2 percent to $15,680.
SHFE aluminum slipped 1.4 percent to 20,010 yuan a ton, tin was up 0.7 percent at 247,190 yuan, nickel slid 0.9 percent to 125,640 yuan, while zinc fell 0.8 percent to 25,580 yuan and lead rose 0.6 percent to 17,470 yuan.
