Copper

Copper touched a one-month low on Thursday, dragged down by poor U.S. data triggering technical selling while dwindling stocks sent aluminium to a seven-week high.

Copper closed at the highest in almost eight weeks as a slumping dollar made the metal cheaper for buyers using other currencies.

Industrial metal lead extended its recent hot streak on Monday, hitting another high, while steel additive nickel was hit by reports of lower use, fund managers and analysts said.

Base metals were boosted on Wednesday as equity markets headed higher, with copper rising 1.6 percent, but analysts said the sentiment remained vulnerable.

Investors are still hungry for a stake in small exploration firms that hunt out pockets of oil ignored by their bigger rivals

The FTSE 100 index edged lower on Tuesday on fresh tensions in the Middle East and as lower copper prices saw miners turn in another weak start.

The drop in oil and metal prices this week has raised fears that a speculative bubble in commodities is bursting, but giant U.S. fund manager PIMCO says fundamentals will hold up the asset class.