Copper futures declined on Friday as lingering concerns about demand from China ate a little bit more into investor interest for industrial metals.

The benchmark three-month copper contract on the London Metal Exchange (LME) closed at $5,119.50 a ton Friday, down from $5,247.50 a ton on Thursday.

The Shanghai Futures Exchange was closed on Thursday and Friday as China celebrated the anniversary of the end of World War II. Trading will resume on Monday.

The most-traded copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange (SHFE), for November delivery, closed at 39,010 yuan ($6,137.12) per ton on Wednesday, down 100 yuan from Tuesday.

London copper climbed to its highest level in three weeks on Thursday, driven by the prospect of more stimulus in Europe, the second biggest regional copper consumer, according to a research note sent to the Global Times on Friday morning by ANZ Banking Group.

But some analysts and brokers have anticipated further declines on Monday, when traders in China return to the market, according to a report by Dow Jones on Friday. "There's concern about another wave of Asian weakness being unleashed and that's pressuring copper prices," Dave Meger, director of metals trading at High Ridge Futures in Chicago, was quoted as saying by Dow Jones on Friday.

In the Chinese market, copper demand from downstream enterprises remains weak, according to a media report by Zhengzhou-based Futures Daily on Wednesday.

In addition, the poor performance of China's manufacturing sector in August continues to cloud market sentiment, the report said. China's official Purchasing Managers' Index (PMI) slumped to 49.7 in August, down from July's reading of 50, according to the National Bureau of Statistics on Tuesday.