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Comex copper ends

NEW YORK: Comex copper remained quiet closing lower after a day of trade devoted largely to book tidying. The September to December spread remained narrow.

"People were just playing the numbers for the most part,' a floor source said.

The LME was closed today, making arbitrage impossible.

Other floor sources said September was little traded, with activity focused on the rollover to December, and the December to March 1996 spread.

All forward months after January 1996 ended higher.

Active December closed at 135.30 cents a lb, down 0.40 cent, traded 135.60 to 134.80 cents.

Support for December was pegged at 134.00 to 134.20 cents.

Estimated volume was 7,000 lots versus Friday's official 7,697 lots.

PaineWebber analyst Bernard Savaiko said the market was on the defensive today, with negative indications for the September to December spread.

"September is losing ground against December and that flies in the face that demand is strong," Savaiko said.-Reuter