By Jae Hur Feb. 16 (Bloomberg) -- Copper gained for a second day as the dollar declined, increasing the appeal of the metal as an alternative investment. Prices of copper for delivery in three months rose as much as 1 percent on the London Metal Exchange, extending yesterday’s 0.8 percent gain. The dollar fell for the first time in three days against six major currencies. Markets in China are closed this week for the Lunar New Year holidays. “The dollar’s retreat paved the way for commodities, including base metals, to climb amid an absence of Chinese players,” said Hiroyuki Kikukawa, general manager of research at Tokyo-based IDO Securities Co. “The market is thin during Asian hours, and a small-lot order can push the market easily in one direction.” Copper for three-month delivery rose as much as $65 to $6,930 a metric ton before trading at $6,909.75 at 11:55 a.m. Tokyo time. May-delivery copper added 1.1 percent to $3.1360 a pound on the New York Mercantile Exchange’s Comex unit. Markets in the U.S. were closed yesterday for a public holiday. The Dollar Index declined as much as 0.2 percent to 80.232 and traded at 80.254 as of 11:59 a.m. Tokyo time. European finance ministers said yesterday they are prepared to impose additional deficit-reduction measures on Greece if needed. Luxembourg’s Jean-Claude Juncker said yesterday Greece will be excluded from a vote on additional deficit measures. Aluminum advanced 0.8 percent to $2,070 a ton after stockpiles of the metal in warehouses monitored by LME fell yesterday for a 17th day, the longest streak since March 2005. Nickel fell 0.3 percent to $19,300 a ton after jumping 3.8 percent yesterday to $19,350. Nickel stockpiles in LME warehouses fell 378 tons to 165,084 tons, the lowest level since Jan. 29. --Editors: Wendy Pugh, Ravil Shirodkar To contact the reporter on this story: Jae Hur in Tokyo at +81-3-3201-8282 or jhur1@bloomberg.net To contact the editor responsible for this story: Wendy Pugh at +61-3-9228-8736 or wpugh@bloomberg.net

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