Copper prices rose in London on Thursday as hopes for progress in U.S. tariff talks with top consumer China and other trading partners provided support to metals.

Benchmark three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange (LME) was up 0.8% at $9,199 per metric ton by 1027 GMT, breaking above the resistance coming from its 21-day moving average of $9,195.

The metal, used in power and construction, fell 3.3% on Wednesday under pressure from a sharper decline in the U.S. Comex copper contract, weak Chinese factory activity and trade uncertainty amid U.S. import tariffs.

U.S. President Donald Trump said on Wednesday he believed there was a "very good chance" his administration could do a deal with China.

The U.S. has approached China seeking talks over Trump's 145% tariffs, a social media account affiliated with Chinese state media said on Thursday.

"However, uncertainty persists, particularly with the U.S. continuing to review potential tariffs on copper imports and broader concerns around global growth still unresolved," said Neil Welsh, an analyst at Britannia Global Markets.

Trading volumes were thin on Thursday with most of Europe's markets also closed for a public holiday and mainland China's markets closed until Tuesday for a five-day holiday.

Supporting copper in the short term were continuing outflows from inventories in the LME-registered warehouses and a recent sharp decline in stocks in the warehouses monitored by the Shanghai Futures Exchange .

Copper inventories in COMEX-owned warehouses rose 50% in April as traders redirected the metal to the U.S. from traditional Asian consuming markets to benefit from the COMEX premium over the LME benchmark.

The Yangshan copper premium , which reflects demand for copper imported into China, rose 34% in April to $94 per ton, its highest price since late 2023.

However, cash copper is expected to average $9,083 per ton in the third quarter of 2025, a Reuters' poll showed on Wednesday, with analysts raising their forecast of a 2025 market surplus sharply amid fears that volatile U.S. tariff policies would curb growth in China and elsewhere.

Aluminium rose 0.8% to $2,417.50 a ton, zinc added 0.6% to $2,608.5, lead gained 0.1% to $1,958.5, tin lost 1.1% to $31,015 and nickel fell 0.6% to $15,310.

(Reporting by Polina Devitt in London; Editing by Susan Fenton)