NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--December copper futures are expected to open floor trading around 2 cents lower Monday, based on electronic activity ahead of the pit session on the Comex division of the New York Mercantile Exchange. In overnight activity, copper fell to a one-week low on the London Metal Exchange, dragged down by a stronger dollar and rising inventories. In recent trading in other markets that have the potential to impact metals in the short term, the euro was down to $1.4669 from $1.4699 late Friday in New York. In screen trading ahead of the pit open, the December S&P 500 futures were down 5.40 points. October crude was down $1.49 in overnight activity. The August Conference Board leading indicators are scheduled for release at 10 a.m. EDT (1400 GMT), with the leading index expected +0.7%. In New York Friday, copper futures declined markedly on concerns about Chinese demand as inventories rose and participants booked profits while the U.S. dollar gained. December copper lost 11.1 cents, or more than 3.8%, to settle at $2.7850. Inventories of copper stored in London Metal Exchange warehouses rose 4,125 metric tons Monday, leaving them at 331,825. The most recent Comex inventory data, released late Friday afternoon, were up 23 short tons at 53,122 short tons.

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