(Bloomberg) -- Copper fluctuated between losses and small gains following four days of advances that were triggered by optimism about the prospects for US interest rate cuts.

The industrial metal edged 0.2% higher by 6:04 p.m. in London, erasing an earlier decline of as much as 0.7%. 

Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell said earlier this week that inflation is returning to a downward path, spurring market confidence about monetary easing. Labor data released Wednesday indicated the nation’s job market is slowing. Looser monetary policy may bolster the broader economy and demand for industrial metals such as copper.

The US dollar fell for a third consecutive session Thursday, which is likely to see subdued trading with the US observing the Independence Day holiday.

In China, treatment charges to turn partly purified copper blister products into refined metal retreated last week from a peak, according to Galaxy Futures Co., citing data from Shanghai Metals Market.

That may be a sign scrap supplies are tightening after benchmark prices pulled back from an all-time high in May, which could boost demand for the refined metal, said Wang Yingying, an analyst with Galaxy Futures. 

Copper rose to $9,882.50 a ton on the London Metal Exchange. Lead gained, while zinc, aluminum and nickel slipped.

--With assistance from Nick Bartlett.

©2024 Bloomberg L.P.