Copper dips third week in a row

Copper fell as stockpiles in Shanghai rose for a third straight week, and fresh signs emerged that a slowing US economy may weaken demand for the metal.

Inventories tracked by the Shanghai Futures Exchange rose 8.2 per cent this week, signaling slowing demand in China, the biggest consumer of the metal used in pipes and wires.

US consumer spending, the biggest segment of the nation's economy, showed signs of weakening as prices advanced, Commerce Department data showed.

"Shanghai holdings grew by some 3,700 tonnes, suggesting that inventories there are building faster than anticipated demand," Edward Meir, an analyst at MF Global Ltd. in Darien, Connecticut, said today in a report.

"This could be a potential negative for copper." Copper futures for May delivery declined 2.3 cents, or 0.6 per cent, to $3.855 a pound on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange.

Yesterday, the price touched $3.9105, the highest for a most-active contract since May 15, 2006, and ended this week up 1.4 per cent. The metal has risen 40 per cent in the past year.