LME copper finds modest support Follows 3 pct fall overnight...

• LME copper finds modest support
• Follows 3 pct fall overnight
• China demand doubts counter supply pinch in Chile, Indonesia

(Adds comment, details, updates prices)

London copper prices found modest support on Friday after a big fall overnight amid fresh doubts over Chinese demand and some upward movement in the U.S. dollar, but were still on track for a weekly decline of around 2 percent

Traders said worries persist about consumption levels in China after the country's housing minister on Thursday suggested moves were afoot to stabilise the property market.

Three-month copper on the London Metal Exchange CMCU3 was up 0.3 percent at $5,875 a tonne by 0218 GMT after falling 3 percent in the previous session.

"Copper is below $6,000 (a tonne) again, but the drop may be seen as a little overdone, explaining the uptick today," said a commodities trader in Sydney who did not want to be named. "But I don't see all the losses being erased."

Strike action at the Escondida copper mine in Chile, accounting for about 6 percent of world supply, was offering support, although the strike "at least in the short term" was largely factored into the market, the trader added.

Operator BHP Billiton's (BHP) decision this week to delay its legal right to replace striking workers is seen a move aimed at sacrificing some output to undermine the union's position.

BHP made a surprise announcement on Tuesday, saying it would not seek to exercise its right to replace the 2,500 striking workers after 15 days - which would have been Friday. Instead, it said it would wait at least 30 days.

A halt to the big Grasberg copper mine in Indonesia by Freeport McMoRan was also giving copper bulls solace.

The row, which centres around the sanctity of Freeport's 30-year mining contract, comes as Indonesia seeks to squeeze more revenue out of its mining industry through a shake-up of regulations over foreign ownership and ore processing.

"Given their size, lengthy disruptions at either will eat into this year's normal 5 percent disruption allowance," GFMS, a Thomson Reuters company providing independent specialist metals market content and analysis, said in a recent report.

"But unless accompanied by other major disruptions they are still unlikely to prevent another year of surplus in the refined copper market."

The most-traded copper contract on the Shanghai Futures Exchange SCFcv1 was down 2.2 percent at 47,490 yuan ($6,912) a tonne. The contract dipped by as much as 2.9 percent at the open.

Lead CMPB3, aluminium CMAL3 and zinc CMZN3 were largely flat after closing lower overnight.

Zinc prices are still nearly double the levels seen in January 2016 due to deficits arising from mine closures and shutdowns.

In Shanghai, aluminium SAFcv1 was off 1.9 percent and zinc SZNcv1 down 2.5 percent.

PRICES

	Three month LME copper		  CMCU3  
	Most active ShFE copper		 SCFcv1  
	Three month LME aluminium	   CMAL3  
	Most active ShFE aluminium	  SAFcv1  
	Three month LME zinc			CMZN3  
	Most active ShFE zinc		   SZNcv1  
	Three month LME lead			CMPB3  
	Most active ShFE lead		   SPBcv1  
	Three month LME nickel		  CMNI3 
	Most active ShFE nickel		 SNIcv1   
	Three month LME tin			 CMSN3  
	Most active ShFE tin			SSNcv1		  
($1 = 6.8711 Chinese yuan renminbi)