Copper prices fell almost 4 percent on Friday, leading a broad decline in commodities for a second straight day as the dollar bounced up from its lowest level in a year. U.S. corn plunged 3 percent while crude oil settled down over half a percent. Only cocoa bucked the trend, closing at 14-month highs. "It's by and large dollar related today," Rob Montefusco, an energy trader at London's Sucden Financial said, explaining the selloff in commodities. The dollar rebounded against the euro as waning risk appetite cut demand for higher-yielding currencies. The Reuters-Jefferies CRB index, which tracks 19 mostly U.S. traded commodity markets, settled down 0.7 percent. Copper for December delivery on the New York Mercantile Exchange's COMEX division tumbled 11.10 cents, or 3.8 percent, to settle at $2.7850 a lb. On the London Metal Exchange (LME), copper for three-months delivery shed $210 to end at $6,175 a tonne. Copper prices also fell on worries about slowing Chinese imports and swelling inventories of the metal, traders said. "There is a feeling in the market that Chinese demand has softened somewhat and there is no discernible pick-up in demand from developed economies," Firman added. Copper imports to China fell 20 percent in August from July, data showed last week, while metals production boomed. "We are worried that Chinese imports will continue to pull back in September. We've seen clear evidence of overstocking within China and production levels are high across the board," said Dan Smith, an analyst at Standard Chartered. Latest LME data also showed copper stocks rose another 3,325 tonnes to total 327,700, up more than 25 percent from early July. Stocks in Shanghai rose 7 percent week-on week to 104,428, topping last week's two-year high. Rising inventory concerns were also partly responsible for the slide in U.S. crude oil, which finished down 43 cents at $72.04 a barrel on NYMEX. Oil prices have been under pressure somewhat since a government report this week showed growth in U.S. refined fuel stocks, with distillates at their highest inventory levels since 1983. In corn, the December contract on the Chicago Board of Trade ended down 11 cents at $3.18 a bushel as fears faded about the possible threat from a frost headed for the agricultural belt in the U.S. Midwest. Corn futures on the CBOT hit the daily 30 cent-per-bushel trading limit on Tuesday after forecasts that freezing temperatures from the frost might harm the crop. Cocoa prices were bolstered by concern over aging trees and supplies in Ivory Coast, and worries over the possible impact of the El Nino weather pattern on production in countries such as Indonesia and Ecuador. "You can't feel anything but bullish about the market," Rabobank trader Nick Hungate said, commenting on cocoa. New York's December cocoa rose $38 to close at $3,112 per tonne, the strongest settlement for a spot contract since July 3, 2008. London December cocoa rose 41 pounds to close at 2,018 pounds per tonne, having earlier touched a contract high of 2,025 pounds.

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