This quarter should be better still if these prices...

This quarter should be better still if these prices continue.

Base metals largely ended higher on the London Metal Exchange (LME), picking up from soggy midday levels as copper rebounded back above the $US3,800-a-tonne level, traders said.

Fundamentally, support stemmed from supply disruptions in the United States, Canada and Zambia, as well as a 3,300-tonne LME warehouse inventory decline.

Copper closed the kerb at $US3,819 a tonne, up from Friday's close of $US3,770 with last Thursday's record peak of $US3,835 due for a re-test, given the supply-side concerns. AAP