Copper edged up on Thursday, supported by ongoing supply concerns and falling inventories, even as higher prices restrained downstream buying and capped further gains.
Benchmark three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange was up 0.08% at $13,819 a metric ton by 0700 GMT.
The most-traded copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange was down 0.21% at 105,890 yuan ($15,642.91) a ton.
The moves come after supply fears alongside good demand pushed prices on both exchanges to multi-week highs on Tuesday and Wednesday.
Analysts at Chinese broker Galaxy Futures said that a combination of rising copper prices and high premiums has curbed downstream buying.
Available copper inventories in LME-registered and Shanghai-monitored warehouses have fallen rapidly in recent months, pressuring physical supply.
That has helped boost the Yangshan copper premium , a gauge of China's import demand, to $115 a ton on Wednesday, a multi-year high.
Prices have also been supported by strong copper shipments into the United States, ahead of a potential U.S. tariff on refined copper, which traders are still awaiting details on. The LME cash-to-three-month copper premium was in a slight backwardation of $4.7 a ton on Wednesday, signalling pressure on near-term supply.
Meanwhile, geopolitical developments continued to weigh on risk sentiment and the demand outlook. Oil prices climbed to a six-week high after Yemen's Iran-aligned Houthis said they attacked two oil tankers as part of a blockade on Saudi Arabia. Rising energy prices have renewed inflation concerns and weighed on industrial commodities by increasing the likelihood of interest rate hikes, which typically dampen economic growth.
Among other LME metals, aluminium added 0.28%, zinc gained 0.63%, lead rose 0.5%, nickel gained 0.62% and tin added 0.16%. Elsewhere on the SHFE, aluminium gained 0.71%, zinc rose 1.57%, lead advanced 1.08%, nickel jumped 1.59% and tin added 0.32%.
