Copper futures settled lower on Friday despite rising supply concerns amid strong demand outlook for the red metal after the key mine in Peru Las Bambas was forced to halt the operations from today onwards after it failed to reach an agreement with local Peruvians who blocked the mine’s transport road. Las Bambas is considered the world’s ninth-largest copper mine and Peru’s fourth, with an output of about 400,000 tonnes of the industrial metal per year.
Copper futures for March delivery fell $0.0095 to settle at $4.2950 a pound on the Comex metals division of New York Mercantile Exchange. Copper on the London Metal Exchange was down 0.74 percent at $9,437.50 a ton.