The Shanghai benchmark copper contract for delivery in February declined by 0.78 percent on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE) Friday compared to Thursday, ending at 51,160 yuan ($8,429.59) per ton.
However, it still climbed by 0.49 percent week-on-week. The trading volume decreased by 12,116 lots Friday compared to Thursday.
The SHFE February copper contract's fall on Friday marked the end of a seven-day rising trend.
According to data released Wednesday by the National Bureau of Statistics, China's production of refined copper reached 654,803 tons in November, up 23.46 percent year-on-year.
A report Thursday by Xinhua News Agency said that sufficient supplies in the domestic Chinese market would limit the rise in copper prices in the future.
There are also several other factors affecting the future pricing trend of copper in the global market. For instance, ahead of a meeting this week of the Federal Open Market Committee, investors are expecting news about when the US plans to start pulling back from its quantitative easing program, according to Reuters Friday.
The program has helped to release more money into the economy, some of which has been used to buy assets such as commodities, the Reuters report said.
In addition, the government of Indonesia has proposed a ban on export shipments of unprocessed metals, which it plans to make effective from January 2014.
This will help to support copper prices a little bit, but it is still unlikely that the country's exports will slow dramatically next year, according to a report Friday by metalbulletin.com.
Generally the US dollar has been strong recently, as US retail sales have performed well during the Christmas season, according to a report e-mailed to the Global Times Friday by Australian bank ANZ. The strong dollar makes commodities like copper priced in the US more expensive for investors using other currencies.
