Investing.com - Copper futures were little changed on the final trading day of the year on Tuesday, with volumes expected to remain light as many investors already closed books before the end of the year. On the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange, copper futures for March delivery traded at USD3.384 a pound during European morning trade, up 0.05%. Comex copper prices traded in a range between USD3.376 a pound and USD3.391 a pound. Copper prices were likely to find support at USD3.368 a pound, the low from December 26 and resistance at USD3.431 a pound, the high from December 24. The March contract settled 0.07% lower on Monday to end at USD3.382 a pound. Market players looked ahead to U.S. data on consumer confidence and manufacturing activity in the Chicago region later in the day, to gauge if the U.S. economy will be strong enough to allow the Fed to continue withdrawing support through 2014. The U.S. central bank said earlier this month that it will start reducing its bond-buying stimulus program by USD10 billion a month in January, amid indications of an improving U.S. economy. Some market participants believe the Fed will likely reduce its bond purchases by USD10 billion in each of its next seven meetings before ending the program in December 2014. Copper prices have been well-supported in recent weeks amid indications the U.S. economic recovery is deepening. The U.S. is second behind China in global copper demand. Prices of the industrial metal are on track to post a gain of nearly 4.5% in December, but are still approximately 8% lower in the year to date. Elsewhere on the Comex, gold for February delivery fell 0.25% to trade at USD1,200.90 a troy ounce, while silver for March delivery shed 0.55% to trade at USD19.51 a troy ounce. Gold is down approximately 29% this year, while silver lost nearly 36%, as solid U.S. economic data underlined expectations the Federal Reserve will begin curbing stimulus.

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