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Shanghai copper futures fell on Wednesday after a broad base-metals sell-off in London, but losses were curbed as investors worried about selling too strongly following sharp gains earlier in the week.

Shanghai's most active December copper contract ended the morning session down 820 yuan, or 1.1 percent, at 71,580 yuan a tonne, from Tuesday's close of 72,400 yuan.

Investors rushed to cash in profits as London Metal Exchange copper dropped along with zinc and tin the previous day, but Shanghai copper was supported as it approached the seven-day moving average (MA) of 70,387 yuan and the 14-day MA of 70,237.

A slight recovery in LME copper also induced short-covering.

At 0350 GMT, the key three-month LME copper futures contract was up $55, or 0.7 percent, at $7,660 per tonne, from Tuesday's London kerb close of $7,605.

"Chinese copper prices fell in line with falls in LME yesterday, but I think they are generally supported," said a Shanghai-based trader.

"Fundamentally, nickel, zinc and tin are clearly bullish because of supply worries and they are supporting copper and aluminium," he said.

Spot Shanghai copper prices hovered between 71,570 and 71,900 yuan, down 430 yuan from Tuesday.

Shanghai aluminium futures inched down, but were off their lows on short-covering in line with the overall bullish market outlook.

"I believe aluminium futures in Shanghai will be in an upward trend for at least the next three months, as domestic consumption becomes stronger partly because of large exports," said Li Rong, an analyst at Great Wall Futures in Shanghai.

Most active December aluminium futures on the Shanghai Futures Exchange closed the morning session at 20,770 yuan a tonne, down 1 percent from Tuesday's close of 20,990.

Both LME copper and aluminium prices were higher in light trading following falls the previous day.

Traders said the three-month LME copper contract stayed range-bound after falling from a high of $7,890 on electronic trading platform Select on Tuesday.

"We've confirmed that topside will be limited above $7,800 after failing to sustain the level, but the market will find a solid floor," said a trader at a Japanese trading house.

He said there is strong technical support for three-month LME copper at the 100-day MA of around $7,505.

Three-month LME zinc hit an all-time high of $4,020 per tonne on Tuesday, but then fell back with tin as investors took profits.

Zinc was expected to be supported by tight stocks. The latest LME data showed on Tuesday that zinc inventories fell by 1,325 tonnes to 127,400, their lowest level since 1991.

LME zinc was little changed at $3,860/3,880 on Wednesday from the London kerb close of $3,865.

Three-month LME tin futures fell to $9,900 a tonne on Wednesday, from the kerb close of $10,000.

Tin reached a record high of $11,000 on Monday, supported by concerns that a clampdown on smelters operating without proper permits in Indonesia would cut supplies.