Copper slips

Beijing : London copper struggled to pull away from the $6,000 a tonne mark, having touched a one-year low in the previous session, as concerns persist that a trade row between China and the United States will weaken demand for metals.

Copper is heading for a 1.2 percent drop in London this week but early trade on Friday was less volatile than on Thursday, when sell stops were triggered after a break below $6,090. "Metal prices will stabilise in the short term after a combination of weak Chinese activity data and escalating trade war concerns among others put downside pressure on the complex, in particular copper," BMI Research said in a note.

"We believe the copper market remains quite tight fundamentally, which should limit further downside and support prices over the medium term," it added. Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange edged up 0.1 percent to $6,070 a tonne by 0443 GMT, after hitting $5,988 on Thursday, its lowest since July 2017.