Tokyo players were mostly on the sidelines ahead of a public holiday on Thursday, with market participants hesitant to grab new positions having seen the key three-month LME copper contract pressured near $3,950 a tonne recently.
The key copper contract was trading at $3,905/$3,915 a tonne, little changed from Tuesday's kerb close of $3,905 in London, where it had moved between a range of $3,853-$3,940 in electronic trading the previous day.
"Metals are generally range-bound as the market is thin during the LME dinner week, but it could come under pressure as prices of other commodities such oil and gold are falling recently," said a trader at a Japanese trading company.
"I don't think copper can extend gains if gold and oil continue sliding. It's possible that copper could test the downside in the near term."
On Tuesday in London, prices edged up as investor confidence grew in industrial metals consumption after a better-than-expected report on US manufacturing in October.
Still hedge funds were seen to be keener to lock in profits from metals ahead of the end of the year, with recent falls in oil also undermining sentiment.
On Tuesday, the key Nymex crude futures contract settled at $59.85, below the closely watched $60 level for the second day in a row. It had dropped as low as $59.05, the lowest since July 28.
Gold futures in New York closed at a six-week low on Tuesday pressured by a strong dollar. December delivery gold on the New York Mercantile Exchange's Comex division shed $6.30 or 1.35 percent to end at $460.60 an ounce, its lowest settlement since September 15.
Firmness in Shanghai copper prices supported key LME copper above $3,900, and kept it pegged near its seven- and 14-day moving averages of $3,910 and $3,903 respectively.
The most active January copper contract rose 210 yuan from Tuesday's settlement to 36,690 yuan a tonne. The key three-month LME aluminium contract was trading at $1,969/$1,974 per tonne, down from $1,982 in London.
The most active February Shanghai aluminium futures contract was unchanged at 17,110 yuan. Three-month LME nickel futures stood at $11,625/$11,725 per tonne, little changed from $11,630 in London.
LME tin futures were unchanged at $6,200/$6,300 per tonne against $6,250 in London. Zinc was at $1,523/$1,530 per tonne against $1,528. Lead was steady at $937/$942 against $938 in London.